The recent death of the four mountain climbers on Vardousia Mountains in Central Greece brought to light a problem with search and rescue operations on Greek mountains and gorges, especially under harsh weather conditions.
Earlier in December, a 37-year-old man was seriously injured after falling in the Ambas Gorge on Crete.
Delayed helicopter response blamed for death
According to experienced volunteer rescuers of the Hellenic Speleological Federation (HSF) who participated in the search, the Special Disaster Response Unit (ΕΚΑΜ) transferred the man by stretcher to a higher point accessible to helicopter and called for an airlift. The helicopter that was to arrive from Lemnos island stopped at the Elefsis airport for fuel where a damage was found that made it inoperative.
A second helicopter from Rhodes, an army Super Puma, was deployed and arrived a few hours later but it was impossible to land on the rugged terrain. By that time, the man who was covered by an aluminum blanket and surrounded by campfires had died.
According to the volunteer rescuers who spoke to Greek newspapers, the 20-hour delay in the handling of the injured man and his transfer to the hospital cost him his life. The man’s parents believe the same, as they told the newspaper at the time: The death of their son could have been avoided if the whole emergency aid and transfer unit was in place and on time.
In light of the recent deadly accident at Vardousia Mountains, an HSF rescuer and spokesperson spoke to Greek Reporter about the official rescue teams’ mishandling and omission in the case of the 37-year-old Cretan man.
The botched rescue operation of December 8
Stelios Zacharias is a member of the HSF team of experienced volunteer rescuers, who are registered with the Civil Protection Ministry Register.
Zacharias didn’t fail to note the mishandling of the situation by the official rescue teams of EKAV and EKAM. He claimed that the information conveyed about the injured person’s condition was conflicting and incomplete.
Also, “There was no specialized medical or paramedical personnel in the rescue team,” he said, adding that the assessment of the injured person’s condition led to an
underestimation of its severity.
Zacharias said that the injured man was put on the EMAK stretcher and was covered with an aluminum blanket, waiting at a slope of the Asterousia Mountains to be picked up by helicopter, since it was impossible to be carried by stretcher on the downward, rugged terrain. Rescuers had lit fires next to him to keep him warm.
About eight hours had passed since the accident, during an attempt at a technical descent with ropes in the Ambas Gorge, Zacharias said. After the failed attempt to move the injured person with ropes, it was decided that an air transfer was the only solution. According to testimonies of the rescuers, the 37-year-old was conscious and was able to speak hours after he was found.
The insistence on an airlift delayed the transfer of the injured person by ten hours, while his condition was worsening. Meanwhile, Zacharias said, “The available Army/Coast Guard helicopters are not specialized for mountain rescue and they could not approach the point of rescue.” At the end, there was no air lift for the injured man, who died 20 hours after he was found.
Lack of expertise and equipment
The HSF spokesperson claimed that the official rescue personnel seemed to lag behind in knowledge of vertical rescue techniques and in techniques for horizontal transport of a stretcher on rugged terrain.
“There is no rescue and transfer by air in Greece. There are no suitable helicopters, and those we have are either not available or they break down in the middle of an operation. For a country that wants to have mountain tourism and winter tourism, air rescue and transfer is necessary,” he said.
Another thing the volunteer rescuer pointed out was that some EKAM men seem to not want volunteers to help. “The feeling we get from the EKAM men is that we are not necessary. But let’s not forget that it was volunteers who discovered the four people who died at Vardousia Mountain.”