Dushanbe, 17 February 2023 (TDI): President Emomali Rahmon recently offered his sympathies to the relatives of the deceased after avalanche.
At least 13 people were killed by an avalanche in Tajikistan’s eastern Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, or GBAO, which is located in the nation’s remote and mountainous east.
As of February 16, residents of Khorog, the seat of the region, told the media that the dead included one 3-year-old child, two schoolchildren, and five university students who were waiting for the bus.
At least 36 structures, including the location of the neighborhood’s Afghan consulate, sustained damage.
Nine persons, at least, were extricated from the wreckage.
Khorog was without electricity for around eight hours due to the failure of power lines. Avalanche risk has forced the closing of a number of important routes, including the one connecting Khujand, Tajikistan’s second city, with the nation’s capital, Dushanbe.
Meanwhile, three avalanches were reported to have fallen in Khorog Wednesday morning at 6:00 p.m. on the evening broadcast of the GBAO Regional TV Station in Russian. According to reports, an avalanche that fell in Khorog’s tem neighbourhood demolished the nearby gas station and canteen. Fortunately, there were no recorded casualties.
Avalanches in GBAO’s Vanj area also claimed the lives of two further persons, according to the Emergencies Committee. According to reports, the GBAO experienced 27 avalanches between February 13 and February 15.
11 households from the Vanj district, 335 families from Rushan district, 17 households from the city of Khorog, 10 households from Shugnan district, and 39 households from Roshtqala district have already been relocated from avalanche-prone locations to safe areas.
Rizo Nazarzoda, the Mayor of Khorog, the provincial capital, urged its 30,000 citizens to stay inside as heavy snow and rain fell.
Videos from the scene showed rescue workers searching through the snow for bodies as one-story buildings were completely covered in snow and ice blocks.
