Avalanche kills dozens in Afghanistan KABUL, Afghanistan, March 6 (UPI) -- An avalanche buried a village in Badakhshan province in remote northeastern Afghanistan, killing at least 42 people, rescuers said. Several people in the village in Shekay district were missing after the avalanche rolled down Tuesday, raising fears the death toll might climb, the BBC reported. The village is near the Tajikistan border. Rescue teams had arrived at the scene, Nasir Hemat, director of the Red Crescent in Badakhshan, told the BBC. Rescue efforts, however, were hampered as roads to the village remained closed. As much as 13 feet of snow covered some of the regions in the province. "There were 190 people living in the village -- 39 people have been killed, six injured," Hemat said, adding three others had died in a nearby district. The BBC quoted officials as saying the provincial governor, who was visiting the area when the avalanche hit, got stranded and was later taken by helicopter to Tajikistan. Several regions of Afghanistan have been hit by severe winter this year. Heavy snow in Badakhshan province alone has killed about 60 people this year, and many in the region also have lost thousands of head of cattle, the report said. "It has been a tragedy this year," Hemat said.