Avalanche Hits Near Atal Tunnel North Portal; Nh-03 Blocked In Lahaul

Lahaul Spiti: An avalanche struck near the Snow Gallery at the North Portal of the Atal Tunnel in the Lahaul Sub-Division on Tuesday, leading to the blockage of National Highway-03 (NH-03). The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) stated that the avalanche occurred in the vicinity of the Atal Tunnel's North Portal, disrupting vehicular movement on the key highway that connects Lahaul-Spiti with other parts of Himachal Pradesh.

Following the avalanche, NH-03 was blocked. The restoration and clearance operations were immediately initiated by road maintenance teams. Further Details are awaited. Earlier, on January 28, the holy town of Kedarnath in Uttarakhand experienced extreme winter conditions, with heavy snowfall and severe cold weather impacting the region.

The Rudraprayag district administration told ANI that continuous snowfall in the higher Himalayan regions had completely blanketed the Kedarnath shrine, the abode of Baba Kedar. Officials said that approximately 3 to 4 feet of snow accumulated at the temple premises, while temperatures plunged to as low as minus 16 degrees Celsius.

Despite the harsh weather conditions, personnel from the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Rudraprayag Police carried out continuous patrols in and around the temple premises and other sensitive locations to ensure safety and security. Even in extreme cold and icy winds, the forces conducted continuous patrols within and around the temple premises and other sensitive areas.

Hence, in view of the possibility of snowfall and avalanches in the high-altitude regions of Uttarakhand, the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) issues an alert to all districts. 

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