Missing trekkers: 2 more bodies found, death toll reaches 7

Shimla: Two more bodies of trekkers were recovered by a rescue team in the Kinnaur district on Friday, taking the total death toll to seven. Two trekkers are still missing in the area, and a search is on to trace them. Rescue teams had recovered five bodies on the Uttarakhand side on Thursday, while two persons were safely rescued. Trekkers had started trekking from Harsil in Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand towards Chitkul in Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh but, before reaching Chitkul, they were caught in a snowstorm.
According to the officials, five bodies were recovered from the boundary of Uttarakhand on Thursday. They were airlifted to Uttarakhand on Friday, while two bodies on Friday were recovered within the boundary of Kinnaur, they were being brought to Sangla to conduct the post-mortem and identification.
Information was received on Wednesday evening about the missing trekking team members, after which a rescue composed of personnel from the Army, ITBP and police was formed. A rescue operation was launched Thursday morning, five bodies were recovered, and two members of the trekking team were rescued. The team was caught in the snow at Lamkhaga pass peak, situated at an altitude of about 20,000 feet above sea level. Officials said that two bodies were recovered from an area beyond Nithal Thach.