Police in South Iceland received a call shortly after one after midnight from a group of foreign travellers who had gotten lost on Sólheimasandur beach. The travellers had walked to the wreck of an American military plane which lies on the beach and had been unable to find their way back to their car.
Unsuccessful search and rescue operation launched
A spokesman for the Police told the local newspaper Morgunblaðið that Police thought the situation warranted alerting search and rescue teams which headed out to search for the travellers. Units from ICE-SAR in South Iceland were dispatched to the area, but when they arrived at the scene they were unable to find the travellers anywhere. Their car was also nowhere to be found.
Attempts by Police and ICE-SAR to call the lost travellers on the phone were also unsuccessful, but the search was called off after Police and ICE-SAR determined the travellers had most likely found their car on their own, but decided it was not necessary to call off their distress call or wait for the rescue units which had been sent to assist them.
ICE-SAR is an all-volunteer force
We at Iceland Insider would like to remind travellers that the Search and Rescue units are an all-volunteer force, funded entirely by donations from the public.
Police in South Iceland received a call shortly after one after midnight from a group of foreign travellers who had gotten lost on Sólheimasandur beach. The travellers had walked to the wreck of an American military plane which lies on the beach and had been unable to find their way back to their car.
Unsuccessful search and rescue operation launched
A spokesman for the Police told the local newspaper Morgunblaðið that Police thought the situation warranted alerting search and rescue teams which headed out to search for the travellers. Units from ICE-SAR in South Iceland were dispatched to the area, but when they arrived at the scene they were unable to find the travellers anywhere. Their car was also nowhere to be found.
Attempts by Police and ICE-SAR to call the lost travellers on the phone were also unsuccessful, but the search was called off after Police and ICE-SAR determined the travellers had most likely found their car on their own, but decided it was not necessary to call off their distress call or wait for the rescue units which had been sent to assist them.
ICE-SAR is an all-volunteer force
We at Iceland Insider would like to remind travellers that the Search and Rescue units are an all-volunteer force, funded entirely by donations from the public.
