On February 5, an outdoor hiking enthusiast in Yinchuan got lost and stranded in the Gongzhongkou scenic area of the Helan Mountains. After more than eight hours of rescue efforts by staff, the hiker was safely rescued at 2:35 a.m. on February 6.
According to Hu Xu, a staff member at the Gongzhongkou Management Office of the Helan Mountains in Yinchuan, at around 11 a.m. on February 5, a visitor arrived at the Gongzhongkou scenic area. Due to snow and ice on the mountain road, vehicles were not allowed to pass, so the visitor parked their car outside the entrance, bought a ticket, and entered the scenic area. However, by 6 p.m. that day, the visitor had not yet emerged. After searching the surrounding areas and temples without success, the scenic area staff immediately reported the case to the 110 Command Center.
The 110 Command Center responded that the visitor had already contacted them, reporting being trapped in the mountains of Gongzhongkou but unable to specify the exact location. The Command Center then provided the visitor’s phone number to the scenic area staff. Staff members called the visitor but were still unable to get a precise location—only that they had started from Bijia Mountain, proceeded southwest across six or seven peaks, and then turned northward.
With this information, the Gongzhongkou Management Office immediately organized a rescue team to search along the route described by the trapped visitor. Due to 15–20 cm of thick snow on the shaded slopes, the rescue operation faced significant challenges. Upon receiving the news, Li Jinzhu, director of the office, rushed to the scenic area to form a second rescue group and began searching up the Daqing Valley. Eventually, through phone calls and light signals, the first rescue team found the visitor near the back mountain around midnight on February 6. Due to the low temperature, strong winds, and having gone without food all day, the visitor was in weak condition. The rescuers chose to descend via the snowy Xiaonan Valley. Thanks to the joint efforts of the rescue team, the visitor was safely rescued at 2:35 a.m.
It was learned that the visitor is an experienced hiking enthusiast who often comes to climb in the Gongzhongkou scenic area. This time, due to the snow, the paths were unrecognizable, leading to disorientation and entrapment. “Here we would like to remind all hiking enthusiasts that climbing on unopened or impassable mountain areas is strictly prohibited to avoid personal injury,” Hu Xu said in closing.
