A total of 149 people are stranded in the area of the Plosky Tolbachik volcano on the Kamchatka Peninsula after torrential rains caused the Studenaya River to overflow and completely destroyed more than 30 kilometers of the only road to the area. Local authorities have declared a state of emergency in the Ust-Kamchatsky region and activated an emergency air evacuation plan, Russian media reported.
„Kam 24“ specified that the blocked group consists of 117 tourists and their guides, as well as 32 drivers, who accompany the all-terrain vehicle. Due to a sharp deterioration in weather conditions in the area of the originally planned rescue site “Kleshnya“, the evacuation route has been adjusted in motion.
According to an official statement from the Kamchatka Krai government, quoted by the “Vedomosti“ newspaper, the rescue operation is being carried out according to the following schedule and logistical plan:
- Hiking: A group of 79 tourists is moving in an organized manner from the “Kleshnya“ base to the safer site “Dead Forest“, where weather permits aircraft landing. Another 15 people are already awaiting evacuation there.
- Air bridge: Helicopters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and local aviation services transport people from the “Dead Forest“ to a key intersection with a turnoff for the village of Eso.
- Ground transport: On site, tourists are transferred to three specially provided buses, which will transport them through the city of Yelizovo to the final point in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
The regional authorities assure that people have been accommodated in heated tents and have provisions, although earlier the tourists themselves reported that their food was used up within 24 hours. As reported by „360.ru“, the 32 drivers will remain in place with the cars and will wait for the complete clearing of the route. Volunteers and heavy specialized equipment have already managed to break through an alternative passage through Lazo to begin the restoration of the roadway swept away by the tidal wave.