16 Chongqing Hikers Trapped in Remote Mountains Rescued Through Joint Efforts of Chongqing and Hubei

       Sixteen Chongqing hikers were rescued 16 hours after getting into trouble in a primeval forest. On the 20th, after a 16-hour search and rescue operation, 16 hikers trapped in the primeval forest at the border of Qianjiang and Hubei were saved, with one person injured.

       At 3:30 p.m. on the 20th, reporters arrived in Qianjiang and saw the injured hiker "Binggua" and his 15 hiking companions in the emergency room of the district central hospital. The 36-year-old "Moxiang," the contact person for this hiking trip, told reporters that during the 16 hours they were trapped, some hikers had felt lost. "The moment we heard the voices of the rescuers, many of us burst into tears."

 

The injured hiker received basic wound treatment at Qianjiang Central Hospital

 

 

       7 p.m. on the 18th

       "Moxiang" explained that the hiking group consisted of ten men and seven women from various walks of life in the main urban area. There was no designated organizer, and it was more of a mutual invitation with an agreement to take personal responsibility and share costs equally (AA system). Most of the hikers had met for the first time, and the majority came from a QQ group called "Happy Hikers Inn."

       After checking the weather and satellite maps, they set off from downtown Chongqing by van at 7 p.m. on the 18th, heading for their destination—Pingbaying in Xianfeng, Hubei. As it was a short hiking trip, they chose to travel light. After more than four hours, the 17 people arrived at Wucun Township, Lin'e Town in Qianjiang, where they set up camp to rest.

      10 a.m. on the 19th

       After a night’s rest, at 10 a.m. on the 19th, the group of 17 arrived in Lin'e Town and had breakfast. Aside from one driver who drove directly to Pingbaying and waited there, the other 16 chose to explore on foot and planned to rendezvous at Pingbaying before 3 p.m. that day.

       "Moxiang" said that because it was their first time going to that place, they had originally planned to find a local villager to serve as a guide, but several villagers they asked refused. The villagers told them, "Keep going right, do not turn left." "Moxiang" said that perhaps the team misunderstood the directions and ended up going the wrong way.

       7 p.m. on the 19th

       "The thorny bushes were everywhere—how could we move forward?" "Moxiang" recalled that at 4 p.m. on the 19th, when they were trying to cross the Huaiqian Primeval Forest in Qianjiang District and reached Yangjiagou within the forest, they suddenly found there was no path ahead. They were in the middle of nowhere, with no villages nearby and no one to ask for directions—the only people around were the 16 of them.

       "Just as everyone was getting anxious, several members suddenly spotted what looked like a farm road across the mountain (it turned out to be a forest firebreak)." After a discussion, the group decided to follow a nearby ditch down to that "farm road," believing it would lead them to a major road that goes to Pingbaying in Hubei.

   7 p.m. on the 19th

       However, while descending along the ditch, something unexpected happened. Due to the steep slope and high drop, the sapling that "Binggua" grabbed while climbing down broke from its roots, causing him to fall about four or five meters down the embankment. Unfortunately, at that moment, a rock about 50 centimeters long and 30 centimeters in diameter rolled down and hit his shin, causing profuse bleeding and even exposing the bone.

       With trees all around and the sky darkening, "Moxiang," "Xuejia," and "Xingzhe Wujang" continued toward the "farm road." "After walking through thorns for nearly two hours, a cliff blocked our path ahead, forcing us to stop." By then, it was already around 7 p.m., so with no other options, Moxiang took out his phone and called the police for help.

   7:30 p.m. on the 19th

       Around 7:30 p.m. on the 19th, after receiving the distress call, the Qianjiang District Emergency Office immediately convened an emergency meeting with departments including fire, safety supervision, public security, health, and Zhoubai Subdistrict Office. The situation of 16 trapped hikers at the Chongqing-Hubei border was reported, and based on preliminary information, a rescue plan was developed.

       That night, the captain of the Qianjiang District Public Security Fire Brigade, Liu Decheng, deployed seven elite officers, joining forces with over 30 personnel from safety supervision, public security, and health departments to form a rescue team, which set off overnight for Xianfeng County, Hubei Province. Meanwhile, the Jiamachi Town Government of Xianfeng County, Hubei, also held an emergency meeting and formed a rescue team consisting of over 30 members, including safety supervision staff and workers from the Pingbaying Scenic Area.

    Midnight on the 20th

       "Because the hikers were unfamiliar with the route, they kept in touch with me along the way, telling me how they were progressing. I estimated they weren’t far from Pingbaying..." In the pitch-black night, the search and rescue team couldn’t pinpoint the exact location of the trapped hikers and thus couldn’t develop a clear rescue strategy. At this point, Zhang Changqing, a farmer-turned-homestay owner operating near Pingbaying, mentioned that based on his experience, the hikers should not be far—likely somewhere nearby.

       To determine the hikers' location, the joint rescue teams from Chongqing and Hubei decided to take a cable car up to the top of Jigong Mountain to set off fireworks, while calling "Moxiang." In the darkness, rescuers launched five or six sets of fireworks, but "Moxiang" called back saying, "We didn’t see any fireworks, nor did we hear any sounds." This brought the rescue mission to a standstill, and by then it was already midnight on the 20th.

       5 a.m. on the 20th

       The search and rescue team immediately held an emergency meeting and decided to track the mobile phone signals of the three people in distress using satellite positioning. The Qianjiang District Fire Brigade located the area where the three stranded hikers were through satellite positioning—it was between Yangjiawan, Yueyawan, and Zhulinwan. Subsequently, the Chongqing–Hubei joint search and rescue team decided to split into two groups to carry out the search.

       One group from the Jiamachi Town search team searched from the scenic area toward Shazichang in Lin’e Town, Qianjiang District, while the other group from the Qianjiang District search team moved from Shazichang in Lin’e Town, Qianjiang District, toward Pingbaying. Around 5 a.m. on the 20th, the Qianjiang search team arrived at Shazichang in Lin’e Town, Qianjiang District, and entered the mountains for the search under the guidance of two local villagers.

       20th, 8:46 a.m.

       “Because there was no mobile signal, during the search, we could only get in touch with the stranded hikers via maritime satellite phones. But even when we reached the mountaintop at over 1,600 meters above sea level, we still couldn’t find them,” rescuers told reporters. Just then, the rescuers suddenly remembered the longitude and latitude provided by the three stranded hikers during their distress call: 108.87063 and 29.47266.

       Immediately, the search team used satellite positioning to lock onto their location while also using their own phones to check their current longitude and latitude. The closer they got downhill, the more the longitude matched. “Anyone there?” “We’re here!” At 8:46 a.m., after shouting twice, the firefighters heard responses from the stranded hikers and were overjoyed. At that very moment, good news also came from the other side—reporting that the three who had called for help had successfully been rescued.

       The rescuers struggled through a thorny jungle and finally reached the vicinity of the small stream where the stranded hikers were located after 40 minutes. The stranded hikers applauded warmly at the arrival of their rescuers, their joy evident. Nearby, the injured “Binggua” sat on a rock with bandages wrapped around his leg, which had also received simple treatment with toothpaste.

       Soon, the 13 hikers packed up their belongings and, under the guidance of the rescuers, descended along the trail left by the three who had called for help. “The mountain stream is situated between two hills, covered with rocks and dense thorns,” Liu Decheng told reporters. Coupled with “Binggua’s” severely injured calf, they walked for over three hours before finally arriving safely at Shazichang in Lin’e Town at 12:45 p.m.

       The moment we heard the rescuers’ voices
       some of our team members burst into tears

       On the afternoon of the 20th at 4 p.m., at the Qianjiang District Central Hospital emergency room, reporters had a brief conversation with the injured “Binggua,” the experienced hiker “Zifeiyun” with over seven years of trekking experience, and attending physician Chen Qilin about the stranding incident.

       Reporter: Do you often go hiking together?

       “Binggua”: I’m 40 years old and became obsessed with this outdoor activity three years ago. We often go hiking together. I’ve always been careful about safety before, but this is the first time something like this has happened. To avoid worrying my family, I didn’t call them when the accident occurred.

       Reporter: Will you dare to go hiking again in the future?

       “Binggua”: This injury has taught me a lesson, but I’ll still go hiking in the future.

       Reporter: Where have you been before?

       “Zifeiyun”: For shorter trips, we’ve been to Wulong, Jiangjin, Qijiang, Nanchuan, and other places. For longer trips, we’ve been to Yunnan, western Sichuan, and Guangdong.

       Reporter: Were you scared when you were trapped in the primeval forest?

       “Zifeiyun”: After the accident, I was confused for several hours, but I wouldn’t say I was desperate. When we heard the rescuers’ voices, many teammates cried.

       Reporter: How is the injured hiker’s condition?

       Chen Qilin: The wound is over 10 centimeters long, 2 centimeters wide, and deep enough to reach the tibia, with slight redness and swelling around it. After admission, local debridement has been performed. Due to heavy contamination and the length of time, stitches haven’t been applied for the time being.

       Reporter: Will there be any aftereffects?

       Chen Qilin: Right now, the most urgent tasks are to thoroughly clean the wound and address the exposed tibia. Skin grafting will be done after recovery, which will take at least a month. There will be no aftereffects after treatment, and it won’t affect walking. (All names of the hikers mentioned are online aliases)

       Expert Advice

       On July 11, 2009, 35 Chongqing hikers were suddenly hit by a flash flood while crossing the Tan Zhang Gorge area between Wanzhou and Yunyang—only 16 were rescued;

       On November 6, 2011, a 30-person exploration team in Guangdong got lost in Heshan, and one person unfortunately died;

       On April 29, 2012, six Chongqing hikers were trapped after encountering a flood while camping at the junction of Sanquan Town in Nanchuan District and Daozhen County in Guizhou Province. Eventually, the six hikers were rescued in Guizhou.

       As the number of hiking enthusiasts continues to grow, adventure activities become more frequent, and safety incidents occur from time to time, how should we view hikers and their exploration activities?

       In response, Liu Fang, president of the Chongqing Tourism Business Association, said yesterday that as early as 10 years ago, hiking groups began to emerge in the city. There are now hundreds of such groups, with a total membership of five to six thousand people, including entrepreneurs, college students, white-collar workers, and others.

       How can hikers avoid similar tragedies when traveling? Liu Fang believes that, first of all, hikers themselves need to travel rationally and not take risks based solely on courage. Some curious and adventure-seeking hikers often connect via QQ or Weibo and spontaneously organize expeditions, which can easily lead to tragedies such as disappearances, being trapped, injuries, or fatalities.

       Secondly, some localities, in an effort to boost economic development through tourism, invite hikers to promote immature scenic spots without proper planning, which is also a major factor contributing to hiker accidents and should be given high attention by relevant authorities.

       Finally, Liu Fang called for the current disorganized state of hiking organizations. With so many hikers in the city, there is still no standardized association. He hopes that tourism authorities can bring hiking organizations under formal association management, proactively provide hikers with information on exploration methods, self-rescue measures, weather warnings, and offer necessary services such as travel training, in order to minimize travel risks to the greatest extent possible.