Two people have died and several were trapped after a massive avalanche hit a popular skiing resort in Himalayan Kashmir on Wednesday.
The avalanche struck the Afarwat peak, a more than 4000-metre summit in Gulmarg, Baramulla district, police said.
Two foreign nationals died in the avalanche, police confirmed. They were Polish, according to media reports.
Videos on social media showed people running and screaming as the avalanche barrelled down the snow-capped mountains.
A total of 21 foreigners and their two Kashmiri guides were caught in the avalanche, which struck at about 12.30pm local time, police said.
Emergency teams had rescued 19 people by late afternoon.
Gulmarg is a popular winter destination and is the world's third-highest ski resort, known for its powdery snow.
Avalanche warnings had been put in place across 10 districts in the Himalayan region after days of heavy snow.
A woman and teenage girl were killed in an avalanche in the Kargil district in Ladakh on Sunday.
On Friday, a massive avalanche hit Paddar in the rural district of Kishtwar. No casualties were reported.
In 2010, at least 17 Indian soldiers were killed after an avalanche hit an army training session in Gulmarg. At least 20 were killed in three separate incidents in 2017.
Avalanches have also caused devastation in Pakistan-controlled parts of Kashmir. A massive avalanche killed 140 people, including 129 Pakistani soldiers, in 2012.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
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Euro 2020 qualifier
Russia v Scotland, Thursday, 10.45pm (UAE)
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When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
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Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as, “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems.
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