Snowfall and poor visibility complicated the search for four South Koreans and three Nepalese missing after an avalanche on Sunday in the Annapurna mountain range on Sunday, authorities said. Relatives of the missing South Koreans have arrived in Kathmandu, as well as South Korean officials who are to assist the Nepalese in the search.
The avalanche took place at an altitude of around 3,200 meters, near the base camp for the ascent of Annapurna, after heavy snowfall on Friday. "The research is underway but the snow is not making things easier," said Mira Dhakal, an official with the Nepalese Ministry of Tourism.
A group of volunteer teachers
Helicopters were dispatched to the area on Saturday to assist in the evacuation of 200 people from the avalanche affected area as well as other trek routes. Six of the missing belonged to the same expedition, while the seventh, a Nepalese porter, accompanied another group.
The four missing South Koreans were part of a group of eleven people from South Korea. The rest of the team are safe. In South Korea, education officials said the four were members of a team of volunteer teachers who worked with children in Nepal.
Annapurna is a mountain particularly prone to avalanches and technically difficult. It has a higher mortality rate than Everest, the highest peak in the world. Thousands of hikers visit the Annapurna region each year, attracted by the magnificent shows offered by the peaks of the Himalayas. In 2014, a snowstorm killed nearly 40 people on this hikers' favorite circuit, one of the biggest tragedies to have struck this tourist activity in Nepal.
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