Afghan official: At least 35 die in avalanche in northeastern Afghanistan

Afghan official: At least 35 die in avalanche

KABUL — The bodies of 30 people were recovered Tuesday from the site of avalanche in a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan, a police official said.

The remains of five other people lost in the snow slide that occurred two weeks ago have not yet been located, said police chief Aja Noor Kemtuz in Badakhshan province. Police and rescue workers spent four days getting to the scene, he said.

Five houses were destroyed in the avalanche, which occurred in the Arghang Khzahkha district north of Faizabad — about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of the Tajikistan border. An estimated 500 cattle and other animals also were killed, he said.

Local residents reported the avalanche in the village of Dood Daood. The road to the village is blocked by snow for several months of the year.

“They are very poor people living in a very remote area,” the police chief said. “From this village to another village is a three days walk.”

In February, at least 171 people died in an avalanche at the 12,700-foot (3,800-meter) -high Salang Pass, the major route through the Hindu Kush mountains that connects the Afghan capital of Kabul to the north of the country.