Got swept away: Workers recount harrowing ordeal

Manoj Bhandari, 40, was resting inside one of the eight containers at the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) campsite near Mana village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district early Friday morning, when an avalanche hit the camp around 6am, trapping 55 construction workers under snow.

- Amit Bathla

DEHRADUN: Manoj Bhandari, 40, was resting inside one of the eight containers at the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) campsite near Mana village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district early Friday morning, when an avalanche hit the camp around 6am, trapping 55 construction workers under snow.

Bhandari, who hails from Junga village in Uttarkashi, shuddered as he recalled the traumatic experience that lasted for more than 24 hours.

"I was inside my container when suddenly the avalanche hit. The container was swept down the slope, tumbling uncontrollably for hundreds of metres. The sheer force of the avalanche ripped the container apart; its doors and roof torn off and windows shattered," he said. "My two companions and I were thrown out onto the snow-covered slope, battered and disoriented. Our phones, bags, and other belongings were swept away with the container."

For what seemed like an eternity, Bhandari and his two companions fought the chaos of the snowstorm, freezing temperatures, and the overwhelming fear of not knowing whether they would survive.