ULAN BATOR, March 14 (Xinhuanet) -- A strong snowstorm hit Mongolia's northern Sukhbaatar province last week, killing three herdsmen and more than 3,000 heads of livestock, the government said Monday.
The nomads, who were herding their animals at the time when the storm happened, got lost in the blizzard which lasted for 6-12 hours. Their bodies were found two days later, the General Authority for Emergency Management (GAEM) said.
The wind speed reached 20 meters per second and the snowfall was 50-60 centimeters in the province, about 300 km from the capital of Ulan Bator, GAEM spokeswoman Dulamsuran said.
Livestock raising is an important sector of Mongolia's economy, which is extremely vulnerable to bad weather due to the nomadic tradition.
