A male member of a hiking team in Hualien recently fell into a valley. Today, the military deployed helicopters twice to transport ground search and rescue personnel into the mountains, but the hiker’s whereabouts remain unknown.
The Ministry of National Defense said today that the hiker had accidentally fallen into a valley at the 35-kilometer mark of the Rueisuei Forest Road in Hualien on the afternoon of the 28th. The National Search and Rescue Center applied for military helicopter assistance that day, but due to poor weather conditions in the mountainous area, the mission aircraft could not enter the target zone, and the mission was canceled.
This morning, the Ministry of National Defense received another request from the National Search and Rescue Center and dispatched an S-70C helicopter from the Taitung Chi-Hang Base of the Air Force. In total, the helicopter transported 11 ground search and rescue personnel for the rescue operation, but so far, there has been no result.
The Ministry of National Defense stated that the military will continue to assist in the rescue mission for the hiker who fell into the valley, as per applications from the National Search and Rescue Center. 1020930
(CNA)