An IAF helicopter on Friday began its search for two foreign mountaineers who got stranded at Chaukhamba in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Thursday.

According to information received from the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) here, the search operation for the foreign mountaineers was started at 8 am.

One mountaineer is from the US and the other from the UK, it said.

The two got stranded after their logistical and technical equipment fell down at Chaukhamba at an altitude of 6,500 metres around 3 pm on Thursday, the SEOC said.

As soon as the information was received in this regard, a request was sent by the district magistrate of Chamoli to the Department of Military Affairs (DMA) of the Indian Defence Ministry for heli rescue of the mountaineers at 11 pm on Thursday.

The SEOC and the Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority are cooperating fully with the IAF in the search and rescue effort, the former said.

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