Death toll after avalanche on Tibet highway rises to 13

BEIJING (AP) — Authorities say the death toll in an avalanche that buried vehicles outside a highway tunnel in Tibet has risen to 13 with rescue efforts continuing. Images from the scene at the exit of the tunnel connecting the city of Nyingchi in Tibet’s southwest with an outlying county showed about half a dozen backhoes digging through deep snow. Tons of snow and ice collapsed onto the mouth of the tunnel on Tuesday evening, trapping drivers in their vehicles. Many of the people were headed home for China’s Lunar New Year holiday that starts Sunday. Nyingchi lies at an elevation of nearly 10,000 feet, about five hours drive from the regional capital Lhasa along a highway opened in 2018.