Two labourers were killed and another is missing after a snow avalanche was reported in the popular hill station of Sonamarg in Jammu and Kashmir today, a video of which has been widely shared online.
The avalanche was reportedly filmed near the Baltal area in Sonamarg, which is located in the Ganderbal district in central Kashmir.
A construction company found its two labourers missing after a rescue operation was launched, and a body was found. The victim was identified as Sandeep, a resident of Kishtwar.
Another labourer is buried under the snow and there are bleak chances of survival. The avalanche has also blocked the Sind river flow.
Fresh snowfall in the higher reaches of the valley have pushed the night temperature above the freezing point across Kashmir.
While temperatures in Srinagar have been around 3 degrees Celsius, Qazigund, the gateway to the Valley, has registered a minimum of 1.6 degrees Celsius,.
The tourist resort town of Pahalgam in Anantnag district, which also serves as a base camp for the annual Amarnath Yatra, registered a low of minus 0.3 degrees Celsius - up from minus 3.2 degrees.
The minimum temperature in Gulmarg in Baramulla district was at minus 3 degrees Celsius, news agency PTI reported.
Kashmir is currently under the grip of 'Chillai Kalan', the 40-day harshest weather period when the chances of snowfall are maximum and most frequent.
Chillai Kalan begins on December 21 and ends on January 30. The cold wave continues even after that with a 20-day-long 'Chillai Khurd' (small cold) and a 10-day-long 'Chillai Bachha' (baby cold) following it.
Undersea Avalanches Pose Serious Risk To Global Internet Connectivity: Report Kashmir Records Highest July Temperatures In 25 Years Amid Scorching Heat Massive Avalanche Near Kedarnath Dham, None Hurt World Leaders On Speed-Dial: How Elon Musk Is Causing Geopolitical Tremors Naval Personnel Among 13 Killed As Navy Boat Collides With Ferry Near Mumbai Video: Passengers Panic, Scream For Help As Ferry Sinks Off Mumbai Coast Gisele Pelicot Rape Case Forces France's To Relook Drug-Facilitated Assaults UK Pledges New $286 Million Defence Package For Ukraine US Says Syria's HTS Should Learn From Taliban Isolation Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.