Avalanche sweeps away tourists in northeast India; 6 killed

New Delhi (AP) — An avalanche swept away a group of tourists in the Himalayas in northeastern India on Tuesday, killing at least six and injuring 11 others, officials and news reports said.

Rescuers were searching for several others who were missing, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

India’s Border Roads Organization said the tourists were hit by the avalanche near the Nathu La mountain pass in Sikkim state. It said rescuers pulled 22 survivors from the snow and took them to a hospital for treatment.

Nathu La mountain pass is along the border with China and is a major tourist destination.

The ecologically sensitive Himalayan region, which has been severely affected by global warming, is prone to avalanches. Last year 27 trainee mountaineers were killed in an avalanche in the northern Uttarakhand region.