Buried 25 feet under snow in Siachen, soldier rescued alive; condition stable

Jammu: Lance Naik Hanamanthappa, who was miraculously found alive after remaining buried in snow for six days, was on Tuesday evacuated to the Army's base camp at the Siachin Glacier from where he was taken to the Delhi's Research and Referral Hospital in a special air ambulance.

Hanamanthappa was trapped in an air bubble, which saved his life. His condition is critical but stable and he is undergoring various tests in the hospital, army sources said.

Hanamanthappa, who hails from Dharwad in Karnataka, was found alive after being buried under 25 feet of snow for six days after an avalanche hit his post at the altitude of 19,600 feet close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan where the temperature was minus 45 degrees Celsius.

The Army had to burrow through more than 25 feet of ice and snow before finding the soldier and nine other bodies. The ten soldiers were buried under a wall of ice that collapsed on them at the icy glacier which is the world's highest and coldest battlefield. The very fact that a soldier was found alive at such icy depths after a few days is being described as a medical miracle.

The family rejoiced over the news. “I am very happy, I want to go and see him,” wife of Hanumanthappa said. She along with a relative later visited the village temple to offer their prayers for the well being of the soldier.

“He is named after the god Hanuman, hence he triumphed death. We are all overwhelmed. We cannot stop crying,” his father told news channel CNN-IBN.

Read: Army releases names of Siachen avalanche victims

The other nine personnel at the post, including a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and eight other ranks of Madras Regiment, have died, according to Lt Gen D S Hooda, Northern Army Commander. "Five bodies have been recovered so far and four bodies have been identified," he has said.

Read: Siachen: Army pulls out buried soldier from 20-foot down under