KABUL -- A series of avalanches engulfed a mountain pass in Afghanistan, trapping hundreds of people in their buried cars and killing as many as 64 so far, authorities said Tuesday.

Rescuers brought in bulldozers, ambulances and helicopters in an effort to reach victims stuck in the frigid snow along the 12,700-feet-high Salang Pass, which links the Afghan capital, Kabul, with the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif.

Search-and-rescue teams recovered the bodies of 24 people but said they feared 40 others remain trapped and may have died, Interior Minister Hanif Atmar said at a news conference in Kabul. About 2,500 people were rescued from their snowbound vehicles, including more than 400 injured.

"Twenty-four bodies have been recovered so far, but the fear is that there could be up to 40 more still buried, and, unfortunately, they might have died already," he said. "That's the best estimate we have at this moment."

The avalanches struck Monday, burying vehicles along several miles of road under heavy snow. Atmar said that the highway tunnel had not been closed off earlier because there had been little warning.

Afghan reports said about 300 cars and buses were trapped on the mountain pass.

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