Body of Norwegian woman skier, missing since January, found

Srinagar, Apr 21 (UNI) The body of Norwegian woman skier, who was missing in Gulmarg heights since January 8, was found this afternoon, a senior Jammu and Kashmir Tourism official said.

The body of Francesca Rongne was recovered at Gulmarg, Director Tourism Farooq Ahmad Shah told UNI.

He said she was still wearing the ski shoes and skies.

Mr Shah said Rongne had gone for skiing in Gulmarg heights on January 8 afternoon where she was caught in a snow storm.

The hotel management where she had checked in at 1430 hrs on the same day lodged a missing complaint in the police station at Gulmarg.

Mr Shah said, ''immediately rescue teams from Army, High Altitude Warfare School, police and tourism department were sent to search for her from different directions which had received more than 15 feet of snowfall.'' This was for the second time that Francesca Rongne went missing in Gulmarg during the past two years. Last year, she took shelter in a snow cave after she went missing during a snow storm and returned several days later.

Official sources said she checked into a hotel on January 8 at 1430 hrs but left after 15 minutes for skiing. However, when she did not return, the hotel management lodged a missing report in the police station at Gulmarg on January 9.

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