A massive avalanche on Friday at Zojila Pass in Ladakh region caused a major accident. At least five people lost their lives while seven others were injured after they were hit by sudden heavy snowfall on the Srinagar-Leh highway. After this incident, the highway was completely blocked and many vehicles were buried under snow.
Relief and rescue operations begin
The intensity of this avalanche that occurred in the afternoon was so high that about 12 to 15 vehicles got partially or completely buried in the snow. Immediately after the accident, the administration came into action and relief and rescue work was started on a large scale. Police, Army, Border Roads Organization (BRO), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) as well as local administration of Sonamarg and Dras were also involved in this operation.
According to officials, the avalanche occurred near Captain Turn in Dras area, where moving vehicles were suddenly caught in the snow. Dras Sub-Divisional Magistrate Vishal Atri confirmed that five people have died in the accident, which include three men, a woman and a child.
Heard the unfortunate news of an avalanche at Zoji La. I have directed the DC & SSP of Kargil to visit the spot immediately and mobilize relief and rescue operations.
All government agencies including disaster relief forces and BRO have been put on high alert.
I am personally…
— LG Ladakh (@lg_ladakh) March 27, 2026
The administration fears that the death toll may increase as some vehicles are still completely buried under the snow. The rescue team is continuously searching for the trapped people and heavy machines are being used to remove the snow.
What did Vishal Atri tell?
Vishal Atri said that the rescue operation is being carried out from both sides of the highway. On one side from the direction of Sonamarg and on the other side from the direction of Dras. He said that upon reaching the spot, a large number of vehicles were seen buried under the snow, but it was not possible to reach the back side of the avalanche at the moment.
Additional help has been taken from the Army and other agencies to speed up the relief work. More than 100 personnel are engaged in this operation, while ambulances and other necessary resources have also been deployed at the spot. However, traffic jam due to vehicles coming from Kashmir side created some hindrances in the rescue operation.
This campaign started at around 1 pm and continued for several hours. Officials say that relief work will continue for the next few hours, so that as many people as possible can be evacuated safely.
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