Successful night rescue of a 14-year-old boy
In the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, Air Zermatt was on mission for a 14-year-old boy from Great Britain. The boy had previously become separated from his family while hiking, went off the trail and was ultimately trapped in an inaccessible rock face. The boy was rescued from the rock face using a rescue winch.
The Cantonal Rescue Organisation of the Valais (emergency number 144) alerted Air Zermatt shortly after 10.30 pm on Tuesday evening. A family from Great Britain had previously set out on a hike near Zermeiggern in Saas-Almagell. In the process, the 14-year-old child got separated from the family and lost his way. The boy was eventually trapped in a dangerous rock face.
The father set out on his own to find the boy. However, as he could only make contact with his son through loud cries for help, and after it became dark, he alerted the rescue services. An Air Zermatt crew immediately flew to the scene together with a rescue specialist from the Saas Valley rescue station. However, due to a cable, the evacuation of the boy could not be carried out straight away. The rescue specialist, together with the paramedic from Air Zermatt, therefore made their way to the father on foot.
While the paramedic accompanied the father back to the valley floor, the rescue specialist tried to get to the blocked boy. Meanwhile, the rock face where the boy was blocked was illuminated from the valley with spotlights.
After reassessing the situation based on the cable, the boy could be freed from his predicament with the winch.