At least 45 people are feared dead after an avalanche struck remote villages in eastern Afghanistan.

Heavy snow engulfed homes in Nuristan province on Monday. Provincial officials say the affected area has been cut off, making it difficult for rescuers to reach trapped villagers.

Avalanches are common in Afghanistan's mountainous north and east, but analysts say this is the country's worst winter in decades.

Last week, an avalanche in the northeast province of Badakhshan killed at least 47 people.

In February 2010, a series of avalanches killed at least 165 people near the high-altitude Salang Pass through the Hindu Kush mountains that connects the Afghan capital, Kabul, with the north.