An American climber called a rescue helicopter to descend the mountain for free free to go down on it with a group from the top of the mountain, and went on trial. The Indendent writes about it.
In November, Alaska authorities filed three lawsuits against Jason Lance. The tourist was accused of falsely calling a rescue helicopter in May – then from the top of Mount McKinley, emergency services evacuated a group of climbers led by Lance.
As the newspaper writes, on May 25, Lance called a rescue helicopter by radio, as one of his group members fell and needed emergency help due to his injuries. However, after the American made two more calls – for the first time the man said that the tourists did not have the necessary equipment for the descent, but the situation did not fall under the insured event and he was denied a free evacuation.
Then Lance contacted again rescuers and said that the other two tourists had signs of hypothermia – as a result, all members of the group were evacuated by helicopter. However, later the climbers admitted to the emergency services that they did not have hypothermia and everything was in order with them, and their leader considered that the Americans must be lowered, since they had already paid $ 375 each (about 27 thousand rubles) for the right to climb to the top of McKinley.
Lance was also accused of refusing to immediately provide a satellite device to rescuers, allegedly having previously deleted messages about earlier calls. The American declined to comment on the situation, calling the lawsuits unfounded.
Earlier in October, Irkutsk rescuers evacuated an instructor in a precomatose state, who suddenly felt unwell while escorting mountaineering camps. A tourist reported a deterioration in health during a hike on the Kyngarga River in Buryatia.