MOSCOW, October 22 (RIA Novosti) – After over a week of searching for survivors of a snowstorm that claimed 43 lives, Nepal has called off the search on Wednesday, AFP reports.
Emergency workers have rescued 518 people during their search, after the snowstorm struck the Annapurna trekking route in the Himalayas last Tuesday, seizing unaware trekkers.
“We have decided to call off the operation for now, staying [on] stand-by if there is any information or calls for help”, Suresh Acharya, senior tourism ministry official, told AFP.
“We have not received any additional information of trapped trekkers from the region.”
Rescue workers believe at least eight people are still buried in the Manang district, while 35 bodies have been found; the total death toll count has reached 43, AFP said.
Tourists from all over the world travel to the Annapurna circuit during October every year. Normally, weather conditions are favorable at this time. More than 110,000 trekkers visited Annapurna in 2013, the Guardian said.
