Two more members of the 12-person group on Klyuchevskaya Sopka have died, according to Roman Vasilevsky, chairman of Kamchatka’s regional government. This takes the death toll to eight.
Yesterday, bad weather stopped a rescue helicopter from landing on the mountain. Today, loaded with rescue workers and doctors, it landed at 1,663m. Rescuers will now attempt to reach the four survivors, who are stranded at 3,300m and 4,000m.
Strong wind and ash from the volcano prevented the helicopter from going higher, Vasilevsky said.
The weather remains terrible. It is snowing, the winds are up to 54kmph, and during the night the temperature dropped to -14°C.
Another group of 24 rescuers are also ascending. They will try to establish a camp at 1,200m to provide support. The main rescue team plan to reach the first stranded climbers (at 3,300m) at midnight tonight local time.
