The rescue of Rafa, the 60-year-old Cordovan climber who had an accident last Sunday on the Aneto glacier in the Aragonese Pyrenees, was “out of a movie”, according to members of the association. Special Mountain Intervention Rescue Group (Greim) from Benasque who participated in the operation, with the Mountain Unit and 061. The injured, with a head trauma and the broken jawis admitted to the Reina Sofía University Hospital.
The alert came through 112-SOS Aragón at around 5:10 p.m. Three climbers fell and one of them was seriously injured. I couldn’t move. They were in Aneto carrying out a three day trip It didn’t end as they hoped.
“We already know the region, 3,205 meters highbut it is true that that day the weather conditions could not have been worse: the visibility was zero“It rained on us and even hailed,” recalls one of the nine soldiers who took part in the rescue, during which minor injuries the victim’s two companions, aged 57 and 51 respectively, residents of Alicante and Cordoba.
He bad weather complicated the action since, after having evaluated the options, the evacuation of the injured person by helicopter from Coronas Hill. “It was impossible. It was then decided to take him down on a stretcher, after spending the night in the mountains. The journey took about nine o’clock during which the injured person was stabilized by the doctor at each stop we made,” says the Civil Guard.
As for the other two climbers, “with a short rope management maneuver, they descended on their own feet with the monitoring team members.
“The Aneto glacier usually records many accidents of this type, but in this case the bad weather conditions made everything very difficult. In fact, it was the rescue carried out this summer by our group that it took longer“More than twelve hours in total,” they emphasize from the mountain unit.
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Try to know in advance the environment in which you will evolve
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Don’t go to the mountains alone
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Plan your activity with adequate information
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Say where you are going
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Find out about weather conditions
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Make sure you bring the proper equipment and materials
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Don’t overestimate your possibilities
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Acquire first aid knowledge
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Bring plenty of food
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Make sure you have a charged phone battery
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In case of an accident, inform the rescue groups with the following information: what, when and where it happened, in addition to communicating the condition of the victim and reporting the weather in the area. Also provide all the telephone numbers of the people accompanying the victim.
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Provide first aid to the victim
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If you plan to use the helicopter, clear the area of objects that could fly away and catch on the rotor.
The basic recommendations of the GREA for the ascent of the Aneto are to “plan the activity well; be perfectly equipped and have a good technical level in handling the equipment. And it is that “the overestimation of the possibilities in the face of a high mountain activity is present in the 45% of accidents. Hikers who overestimate their capabilities when faced with a high mountain activity are the most injured, followed by those who lack experience and those who do not plan the activity.
