Two labourers were killed while another was likely missing after an avalanche hit Sonamarg in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district on Thursday, officials said.

The avalanche hit the Sarbal area close to Nilgrath where Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (MEIL) is executing work on the Zojila Tunnel.

Two dead bodies, identified as Sandeep Singh and Bal Krishna -- both residents of Kishtwar -- have been retrieved so far, officials said.

The bodies have been shifted to Primary Health Centre in Sonamarg for medico legal formalities, they added.

Meanwhile, weather officials have predicted more snowfall and rainfall from Thursday evening in the area. The minimum temperature in Jammu and Kashmir is also dipping below the freezing point.

Officials have asked people in avalanche-prone areas to stay indoors and avoid unnecessary movement in these areas.

In the morning, a massive avalanche hit close to Zojila some 10 kilometres from the tourist destination of Sonamarg in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district. It was captured on camera.

Officials said the twin avalanches snapped the electricity supply in the area and it would take some hours for the officials to restore the electricity.

While Sonamarg usually remains closed for tourists during the winter, the government, since last year, has kept the health resort open.

The higher reaches of the Kashmir valley at night received fresh snowfall while rains lashed the plains. Officials said up to four feet of snow was reported.