Avalanche Care Again in Siachen: Two patrolling jets collapse in snow

(PTI) Jammu, Ta. November 30, 2019, Saturday

Two Indian soldiers were killed in an avalanche once more in Siachen, the world's highest battlefield. On Saturday, an army patrol party was hit by a snowstorm at an altitude of 18,000 feet in the South Siachen Glacier.

The Avalanche Rescue Team (ART) took immediate action and managed to evacuate all members of the patrol party. Meanwhile, troop helicopters were transported to safer places. But despite all the efforts of the medical team, two army personnel could not be saved.

Formerly an 18 November army post was hit by a blizzard in the Siachen Glacier. Four jawans were martyred in the incident, while two of the civilians were killed. An 8-member patrol team was hit by the storm that day.

The rescue team evacuated eight members of the storm, four of whom died during the treatment. The deceased also included two family members. The snow storm hit the northern glacier, where the altitude is more than 18,000 feet. Meanwhile, cold conditions have increased in parts of the Union Territory of Ladakh and Kashmir.

Temperatures dropped below zero in some areas, including the famous Hill Resort site Gulmarg and Pahalgam following the recent snowfall. Kargil was the coldest region of the new Union Territory with a minus 9.2 degrees Celsius in Ladakh.

In Leh, the temperature was minus 8.7 degrees. Gulmarg, a famous ski resort in north Kashmir, the biggest attraction for tourists in winter, was also recorded at minus 7.2 degrees Celsius.

This time winter will be warmer than expected: the weather department

Amid rising temperatures globally, the Indian Meteorological Department predicted that this year's winter climate would be warmer than expected from December to February. In its prediction announced by the department, the average minimum temperature in December, January and February is likely to be lower than average minimum temperature in most parts of the country except in the northern part of India. The department has begun releasing winter forecasts since 2016 and predicted that the weather would be warmer than expected each time. The weather was the hottest in 2018 globally. Meteorologists said the minimum temperatures in the core cold wave areas from December 2019 to February 2020 are likely to be higher than normal.