Killer avalanches hit Indian Kashmir

SRINAGAR AFP Jan25, 2017  -Avalanches killed five people in Indian-administered Kashmir on Wednesday -- four members of a family whose home was buried under snow and a soldier stationed at a military base.  

The four family members died when an avalanche ripped through the small village of Badugam in the Gurez area, close to the unofficial border with Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, while they were asleep in their home.  

Police and rescuers managed to pull an 18-year-old from the mounds of snow but he was the sole survivor.  

 “The avalanche struck the village at 4:00 am, killing four members of a family. One survivor was rescued,” inspector general of police for the region, Javid Gillani, told AFP.