ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, April 11 (UPI) -- Experts said Wednesday there is little chance the 135 people buried by an avalanche at a Pakistani military installation during the weekend are still alive.
Crews worked with disaster dogs and heavy equipment for a fifth day at the military camp at the base of Siachen Glacier, The Nation said.
At least 124 soldiers from the 6th Northern Light Infantry Battalion and 11 civilian contractors have been missing since an avalanche engulfed the military complex in Gayari sector Saturday.
Officials said crews were working on five points of access and that the search parameters were widened.
The rescue effort has been undercut by bad weather and by the scale of Saturday's avalanche, one of the biggest in 20 years, the BBC reported. More than 80 feet of snow engulfed some areas.
Pakistani officials said Tuesday about 40 feet of snow had been removed.
Military officials said villagers, some using only shovels, have been helping in the search effort, which officials said was like "trying to find a needle in a haystack," the BBC reported.
The BBC said military leaders in Islamabad were caught by surprise by the scale of the avalanche, which carried snow, heavy boulders and ice down the mountainside, spreading over about 3,300 feet.
The Siachen Glacier is known as the world's highest battlefield, with soldiers deployed at elevations as high as 22,000 feet and where harsh weather has killed more soldiers than combat.
