The two skiers that a search and rescue unit from the village of Hornafjörður, Southeast Iceland, brought down from Vatnajökull on Friday, decided to pay for the rescue mission. Earlier that week the two Finish cross country skiers had refused to return from the glacier when the same rescue team fetched a third member of the group after he became exhausted and could neither move ahead nor return. The forecast was terrible but the skiers decided to ignore the warnings.
According to Hörður Már Harðarson, the chairman of the national volunteer search and rescue association Ice-Sar, told Vísir that this is the first time that people in grave danger have paid for their rescue.
More than 50 members of Hornafjörður’s S&R unit participated in the mission on ten modified trucks and three snowmobiles.
The skiers got stuck in a blinding blizzard near Skálafellsjökull outlet glacier, around 35 kilometres (22 miles) up Vatnajökull (see map). The weather can get unbearably bad in this area.
It took the S&E unit more than seven hours to reach the men's location, who had lost their tent and a large part of other equipment.
Read more: Ongoing rescue mission on Vatnajökull glacier, new photos and a video
The embarrassed skiers were extremely thankful for the rescue. They will try to get the rescue cost reimbursed from their insurance company.
The two skiers that a search and rescue unit from the village of Hornafjörður, Southeast Iceland, brought down from Vatnajökull on Friday, decided to pay for the rescue mission. Earlier that week the two Finish cross country skiers had refused to return from the glacier when the same rescue team fetched a third member of the group after he became exhausted and could neither move ahead nor return. The forecast was terrible but the skiers decided to ignore the warnings.
According to Hörður Már Harðarson, the chairman of the national volunteer search and rescue association Ice-Sar, told Vísir that this is the first time that people in grave danger have paid for their rescue.
More than 50 members of Hornafjörður’s S&R unit participated in the mission on ten modified trucks and three snowmobiles.
The skiers got stuck in a blinding blizzard near Skálafellsjökull outlet glacier, around 35 kilometres (22 miles) up Vatnajökull (see map). The weather can get unbearably bad in this area.
It took the S&E unit more than seven hours to reach the men's location, who had lost their tent and a large part of other equipment.
Read more: Ongoing rescue mission on Vatnajökull glacier, new photos and a video
The embarrassed skiers were extremely thankful for the rescue. They will try to get the rescue cost reimbursed from their insurance company.
