Alpine Rescue: Two rescue operations on Mount Etna for hikers in difficulty.

The National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps conducted a double rescue operation on the southern slope of Mount Etna. Yesterday early afternoon, the Sicily Regional Service of the National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps (CNSAS) was activated for two simultaneous rescue operations. A Swedish tourist hiking on the southern slope of Mount Etna slipped at an altitude of 2,500 meters while walking on a trail, suffering a suspected fracture to his left ankle. The Alpine Rescue technicians who responded, along with members of the Guardia di Finanza, immobilized the limb and transferred the patient down the mountain using a vehicle belonging to the volcanological guides, to the 118 ambulance for subsequent transport to the Acireale Hospital.

At the same time, a violent thunderstorm hit a group of hikers near the Casermetta di Piano Mirio barracks in the municipality of Biancavilla. The three hikers, wearing inadequate clothing for the weather, panicked after becoming completely soaked and cold. After issuing a rescue call, a team of technicians from the Etna Sud Alpine Rescue Station reached the hikers and secured them.