As of Tuesday, approximately 1,000 tourists find themselves stranded in the remote Hemu village of Xinjiang, situated in the Altay Prefecture in northwestern China. The village, known for its scenic beauty near the borders of Kazakhstan, Russia, and Mongolia, has been cut off from road access for several days due to avalanches triggered by heavy snowfall. Hemu village is part of Xinjiang's Altay Prefecture, where persistent snowfall has persisted for ten days, complicating rescue efforts.
Reports from Chinese state media outlets indicate that the heavy snowfall led to numerous avalanches along highways in the Altay mountains, particularly affecting the route to the Kanas scenic area. Some tourists were airlifted to safety by helicopters over the weekend. The snow brought by the avalanches reached heights of up to seven meters in some areas, surpassing the capabilities of snow-clearing equipment. Efforts to clear the 50-kilometer stretch of road buried under snow began a week ago.
The rescue and snow removal operations faced challenges due to rocks, debris, and tree branches mixed with the snow, making rotary snowplow vehicles ineffective. Rescuers had to resort to shovels and excavators. The unpredictable weather in the mountainous region further narrowed the windows for supply missions. A military helicopter, scheduled to deliver essential supplies such as flour and fuel to Hemu village, faced delays on Tuesday morning.
Altay's highway management authorities reported mobilizing 53 personnel and 31 sets of machinery and equipment for rescue and relief work. Zhao Jinsheng, the head of the highway management bureau, described the avalanche situation as unique, citing heavy snowfall and an unusually high frequency of avalanches. He anticipated that the snow-clearing efforts to restore access to Hemu village would continue for an extended period, given the substantial snow affecting the last four kilometers of the road impacted by the avalanche.
