AFP, Dehradun

Rescuers recovered the eighth and final body from the site of an avalanche in a remote area of northern India, the army said yesterday, marking the end of a marathon operation in sub-zero temperatures.

More than 50 workers were submerged under snow and debris after the avalanche hit a construction camp on Friday near Mana village on the border with Tibet in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.

Authorities had revised down the number of workers on site at the time of the avalanche from 55 to 54 after one worker, previously believed to be buried, was found to have safely made his way home before the avalanche hit.

The army used drone-based detection system to assist in its search operations.

Multiple drones and a rescue dog were also employed. Construction worker Anil, who only gave his first name, recalled his rescue hours after being buried by the avalanche.

“It was if God’s angels had come to save us,” Anil, who is in his late 20s, told AFP yesterday by phone from his hospital bed.

“The way we were engulfed in snow, we had no hope of surviving.”

Being alive now felt “like a dream”, he said.