At least 10 dead in Afghan avalanches

KABUL. January 19. KAZINFORM At least 10 people have died in Afghanistan in avalanches that hit a highway to the north of Kabul, a local official has said.

The avalanches crashed down on the southern section of the Salang Tunnel on Friday, the main highway linking the south of Afghanistan with both the north of country and central Asia, Mohammad Rajab, the official in charge of the road told journalists on Sunday. A minimum of 12 civilian vehicles, plus snow-clearing machines, were swept away by the avalanches. Some 40 people, 10 of them injured, were later rescued from under the snow, Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.