Authorities said at least five soldiers and five civilians were killed in the aftermath of heavy snowfall across Kashmir valley in past 24 hours.
Five people, including a man and his two sons were killed and several houses were damaged after an avalanche hit Kulan village in Sonamarg of Ganderbal district on Tuesday.
Four soldiers lost their lives after an avalanche hit their post in the Machil sector in Kupwara district, a BSF jawan was killed and six others were rescued after an avalanche along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir. In Sonmarag in Ganderbal district, five civilians were killed in after an avalanche hit Kulan village.
Reports said the snow avalanches also resulted in the killing of livestock with officials informing that 30 sheep were killed in Awoora area of Kupwara after they came under heavy snow.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kupwara, Sriram Ambarkar Dinkar said that 30 sheep belonging to a shepherd were killed after coming under heavy snow in Awoora area.
The defence sources said four soldiers were killed after an avalanche hit an Army post in Machil sector along the LoC on Tuesday. Five soldiers were trapped under the avalanche.
The Army launched rescue operations and traced four of the soldiers. While three of them were declared dead, another was injured and is being treated at a local military facility, the sources said.
One of the missing soldiers has been rescued by the security forces.
In Naugam sector, a BSF jawan was killed and six others were rescued after an avalanche along the Line of Control (LoC).
The incident took place at 8.30 PM on Monday. A search and rescue operation was launched immediately, a senior officer of the border guarding force said.
"Out of the seven troops deployed in the area, six were safely rescued but one constable trapped could not be revived even after much effort," he said. The Border Security Force (BSF) is deployed along the LoC under the operational command of the Army.
Another avalanche struck a village in Gagangir area of Ganderbal district in which five civilians were killed while four others were rescued, police said. Rescue operations were launched by army and police in the hit areas, officials said.
Avalanches also hit Gurez and Rampur sectors along the LoC. However, no immediate reports of damage have been received from the two areas.
Last week, an Army porter died and three others were rescued after they were struck by an avalanche along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district.
The avalanche hit a forward location at Shahpur sector, trapping the porters. Army rescue teams immediately swung into action and managed to pull out the porters from the snow, according to officials.
One of them succumbed to injuries while being evacuated to the hospital, the officials said.
High-altitude areas of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh have been experiencing moderate to heavy snowfall, while the plains were lashed by rains.
Authorities in Ladakh had issued a low-danger avalanche warning in various areas and asked people to avoid venturing into the avalanche-prone areas, an official said.