KAMCHATKA: Rescuers tried again on Monday to reach the three remaining members of a tour group stranded on the Klyuchevskaya Sopka volcano in Russia’s far east, after nine died on their way to the summit.
The party of 12, which included two guides, set off together to climb the 4,754-metre (15,597-foot) volcano last Tuesday.
After setting up camp at 3,300 metres, nine of the group set off to climb higher on Saturday, local media reported.
Of those nine, investigators say at least five fell to their deaths at around 4,150 metres on Saturday, while the others died subsequently. Temperatures on the mountain can fall to -14 degrees Celsius (7 Fahrenheit) overnight, rescuers say.
Rescuers were trying on Monday to reach those left behind - two tourists and a guide - in the cabin at 3,300 metres where they were sheltering after attempts to land a helicopter at the volcano on Sunday failed due to gale-force winds and heavy cloud cover.
“The outcome of the search and rescue operation depends on various factors: weather conditions (wind strength, precipitation, cloud cover), ash clouds on slopes, melting glaciers, debris flows and rock falls,“ the local civil defence authority said.
The remaining three members of the group have been able to contact their relatives, Interfax news agency reported.
Klyuchevskaya Sopka is the tallest of over 160 volcanoes whose snowy peaks tower over Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.
It forms part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site listed for its exceptional natural beauty.
Rescuers say the mountain, whose surface is covered with mounds of volcanic rocks mixed with snow and ice, is particularly hazardous to climbers due to its altitude and the risk of volcanic eruption.
Investigators have now launched a criminal investigation against the director of a tour company based in Novosibirsk. - Reuters
