Avalanche hits Army patrol in Siachen; four soldiers, two porters killed

Four soldiers and two civilian porters died after being trapped in snow for hours after an avalanche hit Army positions in northern Siachen Glacier on Monday. 

The soldiers were part of a patrolling group of eight; they died due to extreme hypothermia, defence officials said.  The team was on patrol when the avalanche hit them around 3 pm. 

The Army launched a massive search and rescue operation to bring back the trapped soldiers. 

All the soldiers were pulled out of the debris; seven were critically injured.

The soldiers were evacuated by helicopters to the nearest military hospital where they are undergoing treatment. The Siachen Glacier at the height of around 20,000 ft in the Karakoram range is known as the highest militarised zone in the world where the soldiers have to battle frostbite and high winds. Avalanches and landslides are common at the glacier during the winters and temperatures can drop to as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius.