Avalanche Kills Swedish Skier At Gulmarg Ski Resort In Jammu & Kashmir, India (UPDATED)

January 18, 2018

Gulmarg, India – On Wednesday, January 17, 2018, a 25-year-old Swedish skier was killed in an avalanche near the second phase of the Gondola Cable Car on Apharwat Peak at the Gulmarg Ski Area in Jammu & Kashmir in the Himalaya of India.

The victim was skiing with another Swede when the accident occurred. Both were caught in the slide. Military and police teams responded to the accident. One of the skiers sustained injuries and is now in stable condition.The other skier did not survive.

Reuters.com identified the victim as 25-year-old Daniel Akesson. GreaterKashmir.com identified the rescued skier as Swedish National Benjamin Asbers.

According to The Gulmarg Avalanche Advisory Facebook page, “**A skier triggered avalanche today in the backcountry resulted in two involvements; one buried and killed.** The incident report will be posted here in the coming days.”

Authorities had issued an avalanche warning for seven districts in Kashmir through Thursday evening (ZeeNews.India.com).

Missing skier traced by Ski Rescue Team of J&K Police and is safe.His name is Benjeman and he also hails from Sweden. https://t.co/96o9AOKKpR

— J&K Police (@JmuKmrPolice) January 18, 2018

We will try to update this post when more information is available.

UPDATE 1/22:

The official Press Release and Investigation Report were posted online. They can be read here. In the accident report, the avalanche was described as follows: “The avalanche occurred at 3889 m in the southern path of Sheenmai bowl outside of the Gulmarg ski area. The crown was approximately 30 meters wide (measured on Google Earth) and 20-60 cm deep. The slope of the starting zone ranged from 38-45° with a north to northeast aspect (30°-60°). The avalanche ran 1370 linear meters and 700 vertical meters with a runout angle of 25°. The avalanche is classified SS-ASu-R2-D2-I.”

Read more about the avalanche in Gulmarg, India from the following sources: