Avalanche kills 24 in northwest Pakistan

0 Comments | AFP, December, 2005

ISLAMABAD (AFP) — At least 24 people were killed in an avalanche while hunting precious stones in a remote mountain range in northwest Pakistan, police said.

The incident happened on Tuesday in the rugged Karakoram range in Kohistan district, local police chief Ashfaq Ahmed told AFP Friday.

"There were around 120 people extracting gemstones when the avalanche struck, burying a number of them," Ahmed said.

"Twenty-four were killed and the rest are fine. Locals have dug all the bodies out of the snow," Ahmed said.

He said a military helicopter had been despatched to the hard-to-reach area and had so far brought back 12 bodies to Dassu, the main town in the region, where they were handed over to relatives.

Police only learned of the avalanche...