Two Poles fell to their death on Svalbard
A man and woman, both Polish citizens, have fallen several hundred meters down a steep mountain slope. The poles have been found dead in an avalanche area in Hornsund on Svalbard.
The dead poles were associated with the Polish research station in Hornsund, the Governor of Svalbard writes. They received notification of the accident at 11.30 am on Sunday.
They were found dead in a difficult-to-reach avalanche area under the Kamkrona Mountain east of the research station.
“The two have probably been on top of the mountain. Then they have walked onto an overhanging snowdrift that has fallen off,” Operations Manager Anders Haugerud tells NTB.
The police were busy alerting the next of kin on Sunday evening. They will not provide more information about the two before this is completed.
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Went for a hike on Friday
The bodies are brought to Longyearbyen and will as soon as possible be dispatched onwards to Tromsø.
The two poles went on a hike from the station on Friday. When they did not return at the agreed time on Sunday morning, crews from the station went out to look for them. They were found dead a few hours later
“We sent a helicopter with a doctor and police to investigate what has happened and to follow up on the other employees at the station. The bodies have now been brought to Longyearbyen,” the Governor of Svalbard, Kjerstin Askholt, informs in a press release.
There are usually 14 persons working at the Polish research station in Hornsund, which is situated about 130 kilometres south of Longyearbyen.
This winter season, eleven persons have lost their lives in avalanches in Norway. There are more than the last three winters put together. The number has been so large only once before since the turn of the millennium.
“We are shocked by this tragic accident where two young persons died, and want to express our deepest sympathy to the families and loved ones of Ania and Michael,” writes the Institute of Geophysics at the Academy of Sciences in Warsaw (PAN) on Facebook.
Z głębokim żalem informujemy, że podczas wycieczki w góry w rejonie fiordu Hornsund zginęło dwoje uczestników 41….
Geplaatst door Instytut Geofizyki PAN op Zondag 19 mei 2019
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
