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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Ten killed in Turkish avalanche | Ten killed in Turkish avalanche |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| An avalanche in north-east Turkey has killed 10 climbers, while seven others from the same group managed to survive. | An avalanche in north-east Turkey has killed 10 climbers, while seven others from the same group managed to survive. |
| Two of the climbers remain in hospital, after being rescued by search teams on Mount Zigana, in Gumushane province. | Two of the climbers remain in hospital, after being rescued by search teams on Mount Zigana, in Gumushane province. |
| "Our pain is great. I extend my condolences to the families of the victims," said Housing Minister Faruk Nafiz Ozak, who visited the scene. | |
| Officials said the avalanche may have been caused by unusually warm temperatures loosening snow. | Officials said the avalanche may have been caused by unusually warm temperatures loosening snow. |
| The avalanche struck at about 1100 (0900 GMT) as the climbers were at a height of 7,260ft (2,200m), Turkish NTV television reported. | The avalanche struck at about 1100 (0900 GMT) as the climbers were at a height of 7,260ft (2,200m), Turkish NTV television reported. |
| Mr Ozak said the climbers were crossing a deep valley when a huge block of snow dislodged and hit the group - members of a mountaineering club in neighbouring Trabzon province. | Mr Ozak said the climbers were crossing a deep valley when a huge block of snow dislodged and hit the group - members of a mountaineering club in neighbouring Trabzon province. |
| Search teams and locals equipped with shovels, and accompanied by sniffer dogs, scoured the slopes for bodies and survivors. | Search teams and locals equipped with shovels, and accompanied by sniffer dogs, scoured the slopes for bodies and survivors. |
| One of the survivors, 60-year-old Rahmi Keles, said he saw the avalanche approaching but was pulled under it. | One of the survivors, 60-year-old Rahmi Keles, said he saw the avalanche approaching but was pulled under it. |
| He told Turkish media he had managed to clear the snow from his face and shout to a fellow climber for help. | He told Turkish media he had managed to clear the snow from his face and shout to a fellow climber for help. |
| "I had no chance of getting out alone. She forked out the snow and released first my left, then my right leg. | "I had no chance of getting out alone. She forked out the snow and released first my left, then my right leg. |
| "Without Yonca I would not have survived," he told the state-run Anatolian news agency. | "Without Yonca I would not have survived," he told the state-run Anatolian news agency. |