All victims had been accounted for, according to the Gangtok district collector
A coffin bearing the body of one of the Nepal victims of the disaster. Photo: Dichen Ongmu Rescue operations at Nathula Road in East Sikkim, where seven tourists were killed after being buried in the snow on April 4, 2023, came to a close on the evening of April 5, the district collector of Gangtok told journalists.
However, the helpline number will remain active, Tushar Nikhare added.
The National Disaster Response Force, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, local responders, the taxi drivers’ association, Sikkim Police, SAP, State Disaster Response Force, Army authorities, General Reserve Engineer Force, and Tiranga mountain rescue team with their specialised radar systems, which can detect objects buried 20 metres below the snow, all joined the operation.
“Until 3 PM, no further missing persons were identified, and no one was expected to be buried under the slide, as the police had already located all the people who had inquired about missing persons through the helpline number,” Nikhare said.
The DC clarified that the incident was not an avalanche but part of a snow slide, according to experts. He also mentioned that tourists would not be allowed to stop by the highway to click photographs or play with the snow.
“Concerned authorities and drivers have now been instructed to stop only in designated areas, where tourists could take photographs and enjoy the view,” added the DC.
On April 5, three victims of the Sikkim disaster, who belonged to Nepal, were handed over to their families and taken in a hearse vehicle from the STNM Hospital in Gangtok after undergoing an autopsy.
The victims will be transported to Kakarvitta on the Indo-Nepal border near Siliguri in West Bengal and then handed over to the Nepal government to ensure that they reach their homes with all the necessary logistical support.
The three victims from Nepal were identified as two women. One, aged 29 years, was from Rupandi while the other was a 22-year-old from Chitwan. The third victim, a 32-year-old man from Chitwan, was also taken to the Indo-Nepal border in the same hearse vehicle.
Another male victim, a 28-year-old from Siliguri, was also handed over to his family and taken in a separate hearse vehicle from STNM Hospital on the same day.
The autopsies for two other victims from Uttar Pradesh and one from Kolkata, West Bengal, have been conducted, but the flights carrying their bodies will take off tomorrow as one of the victim's relatives could not identify the deceased.
According to STNM Hospital sources, the forensic reports of all seven victims suggest that asphyxia was the cause of death.
None of the victims had any major injuries, and they were all buried under the snow, resulting in asphyxia. However, a detailed report on their death will only be available after two weeks.
The logistics for flying the remaining deceased to their homes in Uttar Pradesh and Kolkata are being overseen by the Sikkim government, according to a tourism stakeholder.
Meanwhile, the majority of the injured victims admitted to the STNM Hospital were discharged on April 5, except for a few with major injuries. Patients who wish to seek medical attention outside of the hospital or in other parts of the country have also been given permission to do so.
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