Three tourists climbing Romania’s Făgăraș Mountains died this past weekend in separate accidents after slipping hundreds of meters down steep, ice-covered slopes.
According to the mountain rescuers, two of the victims may not have had the necessary equipment for winter conditions. Their bodies could not be recovered immediately because of the late hour, officials said, cited by ProTV.
The first alert came from Lespezi Peak (2,517m). The victim had left from Piscul Negru together with a man he had met online, and another hiking companion joined them along the way. Near the ridge, the man reportedly tripped and fell nearly a kilometer.
The responding rescue helicopter identified the man’s body, but it also received a new call for help, this time from the Netedu Peak area (2,309m). Here, three tourists slipped and fell several hundred meters down a steep, snow-covered slope.
Only one managed to stop his fall and was later rescued. The other two, aged 35 and 50, from Ploiești, could not stop. One was reportedly part of the police special operations service, and the other had retired from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Through this hike, they reportedly wanted to celebrate Army Day, October 25. However, authorities say they were not properly equipped for the winter conditions.
The mountain rescuer who located the victims reported a very difficult climb. “For the first time in my life, I remained directly on the hoist cable for the evaluation. What I found I cannot describe in words,” he said.
The three bodies had to be recovered by land, in a difficult operation involving 15 mountain rescuers.
radu@romania-insider.com
(Photo source: Facebook/Serviciul Public Județean Salvamont Sibiu)
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