Siachen: US rescue team arrives to speed up operation

Pakistan

Siachen: US rescue team arrives to speed up operation

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US has sent a team of 8 experts to Islamabad to provide technical assistance in rescue operation.

09 April,2012 09:50 am

A nine-member US experts’ team has arrived in Pakistan to help searching 135 people buried under snow.The US sent a team of experts to help Pakistan search for 135 people buried by a massive avalanche that engulfed a military complex in a mountain battleground close to the Indian border.Pakistan will consult with the team to determine what help is needed to expedite the rescue operation.At least 240 Pakistani troops and civilians worked at the site of the disaster at the entrance to the Siachen Glacier with the aid of sniffer dogs and heavy machinery, said the army. But they struggled to dig through some 25 meters (80 feet) of snow, boulders and mud that slid down the mountain early Saturday morning.Pakistani army chief said the calamity in no way will affect the morale of the troops defending the motherland at the highest battlefield.he also visited the site Sunday to supervise rescue operations.The American assistance comes at a tense time between the two countries and could help improve relations following American airstrikes in November that accidentally killed 24 Pakistani soldiers at two posts along the Afghan border.Abbas, the army spokesman, said the headquarters that was buried was located in an area previously believed to be safe. At an altitude of around 4,500 meters (15,000 feet), it is the main gateway through which troops and supplies pass on their way to more remote outposts.