Rescuers in Northern India are desperately searching for as many as 150 people after a glacier broke away causing an avalanche of water and debris and killing 26 people.

Rescue crews are struggling to reach trapped victims after the glacier broke off from Nanda Devi mountain in the state of Uttarakhand, on Sunday morning and left a trail of destruction in its wake.

Although the death toll has not been confirmed, Om Prakash, chief secretary of Uttarakhand, said it could be up to 150 people.

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On Tuesday, 12  workers were rescued form while tunnel while more people are thought to be After spending eight hours trapped inside, one worker told local news agency ANI what had happened.

“We were inside the tunnel when someone shouted ‘move out’. But before we could leave, water entered the tunnel at high speed and we got stuck. We held tunnel crown until water level subsided,” the labourer said.

The disaster has been linked to climate change.