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Death toll from volcano climbing in Russia's Kamchatka rises to 8
The death toll from an accident in climbing the Klyuchevskaya Sopka volcano in Russia's Kamchatka peninsula rose from six to eight after freezing winds halted a rescue attempt, TASS reported on Monday (Sep 5).
Six people had initially been reported killed, according to officials on the Kamchatka peninsula, and six more were believed to be stranded from the party of 12, which included two guides, according to The Guardian.
The rescue operation will continue when weather condition allows, a local official was quoted as saying.
The party of 12, ten Russian tourists and two guides, set off on Tuesday to climb the mountain – Eurasia’s highest active volcano – but ran into trouble on Saturday (Sep 3) when some of the group fell to their death at almost 4,200m, authorities said.
One person is thought to have a broken leg, they added.
Rescuers attempted to reach them on Sunday but had to turn back as severe winds prevented their helicopter from landing.
Temperatures on the mountain can reach as low as minus 14C overnight.
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Tatyana Yukhmanova, a representative from the local civil defence authority, said rescuers would try to reach the group again on Monday if weather conditions allowed.
Klyuchevskaya Sopka, with a height of about 4,750 meters, is the highest active volcano in Eurasia.
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