August 26th 2024.
Police in Iceland have officially ended their search for two tourists who were initially believed to be missing after an unfortunate incident at an ice cave. Sadly, one person lost their life and another was seriously injured when the cave collapsed at around 3pm on Sunday. The victims were both American citizens, according to police reports.
However, after further investigation and careful examination of the tour operator's records, authorities have determined that there were only 23 people on the trip instead of the initial belief of 25. As a result, they have called off the search as they now believe that there is no one else missing.
The police field manager at the scene shared the news that all the ice that was thought to have fallen on the people has been removed. This has led to the discovery that no one was actually trapped under the ice, relieving the rescuers from their intense efforts to find and save them.
Initially, the rescue team had been working tirelessly to cut through the remnants of the collapsed ice cave in hopes of locating the missing individuals. However, due to dangerous conditions, the search had to be suspended overnight and resumed the next morning around 7am, as reported by Icelandic broadcaster RUV. The video footage showed the rescuers working diligently inside two large craters surrounded by the darkened ice of the Breidamerkurjokull glacier.
Thankfully, by the end of the day, the rescuers were satisfied that there had been a mistake in the record keeping and no one else was actually missing. The police have revealed that there was some misleading information about the number of people on the tour, which led to the confusion.
Ice caves are a popular attraction for tourists in Iceland, as they offer the unique opportunity to explore the inside of a glacier and witness the beautiful blue hues and patterns in the ice. Approximately 11% of Iceland's territory is covered by glaciers, with the largest being Vatnajokull, which spans 7900 square kilometers. The Breidamerkurjokull glacier, where the incident occurred, is a branch of Vatnajokull that ends at the Jokulsarlon Lagoon, where icebergs regularly break off from the glacier.
According to local news site Visir, the group that was at the cave during the collapse was on a guided tour. Fortunately, most of the people were outside the cave when it collapsed. However, rescuers faced challenges in reaching the glacier due to the rugged terrain and had to use chainsaws to cut through the ice.
It is worth noting that the glacier is about 300 kilometers from a volcano that erupted on Friday on the Reykjanes Peninsula in south-western Iceland. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families during this difficult time.
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