Four climbers who went missing on Vardousia Μountain in Central Greece since Christmas morning, were found dead, almost huddled together as they were hit by an avalanche.
The rescuers said that, apparently, the four climbers did not have time to react when they were crushed by the avalanche. The rescue team searched for almost 24 hours before finding the bodies of the four climbers buried under the dense snow as if they were embraced.
The climbers had set off from the village of Athanasios Diakos of Phocis in Central Greece heading for the Korakas peak of Vardousia. Everything indicates that they fell into a snowstorm as they had advanced to the peak and and were swept away buy the avalanche with no time to react or escape from the spot.
The group were crushed by the avalanche a short distance from the mountain peak, something that the rescuers had estimated from the beginning of the search.
The climbers
The group consisted of four climbers. One was a 55-year-old man from the Lechaina area of Ilia in the Peloponnese, regarded as an experienced climber with numerous ascents on mountains across Greece.
Another member was a man who frequently visited the area and had rented a house in the village of Athanasios Diakos. He worked as a computer technician. A third man was also part of the group.
The fourth climber was a woman, a 31-year-old teacher from Trikala, who was a friend of one of the male climbers.
According to area residents who spoke on public television ERT, the area where the group chose to climb is an extremely dangerous terrain, with steep passages and vertical slopes. Experienced climbers emphasize that in conditions of fresh and unstable snow, even a minimal noise or a voice can cause an extensive avalanche.
As stated by the president of the community, K. Mastrokostopoulos, the assistance of a helicopter has also been requested due to the long distance from the nearest road and the use of stretchers on such a terrain is nearly impossible. He stressed the crucial assistance of a group of experienced climbers who ran fro the search.
The chronicle
On Christmas morning, the climbers did not communicate with their loved ones. The concern of their relatives and friends peaked when attempts to contact them were unsuccessful, so they notified the authorities.
Thirty firefighters with the 1st, 6th, 7th and 8th EMAK Mountaineering Teams, a special tracked vehicle, the Thessaly Drone Team, as well as a helicopter were mobilized to locate them. Mountain guides from the Hellenic Mountaineering and Climbing Federation, volunteers and residents of the area also participated in the search.
The extensive search operation lasted almost 24 hours, in one of the most demanding routes of oen of Greece’s dangerous mountains.
The weather conditions in the area, with low temperatures, strong winds and thick snow, significantly hampered the rescuers’ work. Despite the efforts of the rescue teams, the four climbers were located in an extremely inaccessible spot, with reports indicating a particularly difficult extrication of the bodies.