Two foreign women mountaineers, Michelle Theresa Dvorak from the USA and Fay Jane Manners from the United Kingdom, who lost their way on October 3 and were stranded at a height of 6,015 metres on the way to the Chaukhamba III peak in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district were safely rescued Sunday morning, said Nand Kishore Joshi, Disaster Management officer, Chamoli.
The rescue operation by the Indian Air Force (IAF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) began a day after the two women climbers sent an SOS call.
The pair were part of a foreign mountaineering expedition by the IMF, as per PTI.
As per reports, their bag containing food and mountaineering equipment fell into a ravine. However, the women climbers sent information about being lost on the mountain through pager to their respective embassies, according to The Hindu.
Recalling the incident, Manners told local reporters, “We were pulling up my bag and she (Dvorak) had her bag on her. And the rockfall came, cut the rope with the other bag, and it just went down the entire mountain,” as quoted by Associated Press.
As per The Indian Express report, the rescue operation began on Friday, but the challenging terrain of Chaukhamba III, which includes risky glaciers, steep ice and rock faces, and rarefied air at high altitudes, made it very difficult for helicopters to access the area. The report also added that the climbers could see the aerial search being conducted but could not signal them as they had lost all of their rescue equipment.
However, a French mountaineering team on a separate expedition along the same route since September 18 helped locate the stranded women trekkers.
While speaking to news agency PTI, Chamoli's Additional Information Officer Ravindra Negi said the coordinates of the location of the stranded mountaineers obtained from the French team were of great help to the joint team of rescuers in tracing them and bringing them to the helipad.
(With inputs from agencies)
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
MoreLess