Thousands of people remained stranded in remote mountain villages in Tajikistan on Monday as the death toll from last week's avalanches rose from nine to 10, the Emergency Ministry said. Several avalanches struck the mountains of eastern Tajikistan on Thursday, burying dozens of homes in snow. Emergency workers continued on Monday to clear the roads, many of which were covered in two meters (6.5 feet) of snow. Food and fuel were being delivered to more than 10,000 people in remote mountain villages who had been cut off from the outside world for several days in the Gornyy Badakhshon region, the ministry said. Rescue workers recovered the body of the 10th victim on Sunday in the village of Chashmai, the ministry said. Another avalanche also hit the Muminabad district on Sunday, damaging several buildings. Mountains cover about 90 percent of the impoverished Central Asian country and avalanches are common in winter and early spring.
