Uttarkashi avalanche: Rescue teams recover 2 bodies of eight missing trekkers

Search and rescue teams on Tuesday recovered the bodies of two members of an eight-person trekking group that went missing following a massive avalanche on the high-altitude Kedartal trek in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi district on October 29, officials said.

Uttarkashi District Disaster Management Officer (DDMO) Shardul Gusain said that a joint team comprising the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) located the bodies during a search operation near Kedar Kharak.

“The joint SDRF and NIM team informed us via satellite phone that they recovered two bodies, one male and one female, during searches. The recovered bodies are yet to be identified,” Gusain said.

“After wrapping up the day’s search around 3pm, the rescue team returned to their base camp at Kedar Kharak. The search operation will resume tomorrow. To streamline the rescue efforts, the team has built an alternative helipad near the incident site,” he added.

Officials said that joint team also recovered tents and equipment bags near Kedar Kharak, the second major campsite located at an altitude of approximately 4,000 metres along the trail. A 10-member joint SDRF-NIM unit was heli-dropped at Kedar Kharak earlier on Monday.

The group of trekkers who went missing comprised of five male trekkers from West Bengal, two female trekkers from Uttar Pradesh, and a local guide from Uttarkashi.

The avalanche struck near Kedar Kharak on October 29 as the expedition was descending from Kedartal, a glacial lake situated at an elevation of 15,485 feet (4,720 metres). Fed by the melting snows of Mt Thalay Sagar, Mt Bhrigupanth, and the Jogin peaks, the lake is a popular destination for seasoned high-altitude hikers.

Starting from Gangotri, the 18-kilometre trek ascends steeply alongside the Kedar Ganga river. The terrain demands technical caution, taking trekkers through dense birch forests, high alpine meadows, and highly unstable moraine fields.

The 12-member expedition—comprising seven trekkers and five support personnel—originally flagged off from Gangotri on October 27 and was slated to complete the circuit by October 29.

The alarm was raised when four support staff members managed to navigate back to Gangotri on October 30 after losing contact with the remaining eight individuals during the slide. “When the trekking agency, Soul Seeker, alerted us, rescue teams were immediately mobilised,” Gusain said.

SDRF Commandant Arpan Yaduvanshi said they have been facing difficulties in the search and rescue operation due to inclement weather in the area.