Three Israeli trekkers missing in Chile

12-year-old Israeli boy dies during ski vacation in the Italian Alps.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
chile volcano 298.88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
chile volcano 298.88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Several local rescue teams were searching Saturday for three Israeli hikers who were reported missing in Chile on Thursday after they failed to return as expected from a trek in the Puyehue National Park. Other rescue teams from Israel also joined the mission to the South American country to help look for Gal Idan, Lior Rozen and Nimrod Vered, who have been missing for several days. Experts reported on Friday that the trek the hikers had selected should not have taken more than five days to complete, but that none of the group had been in contact with family or friends for eight days. Local search teams began tracking the three young people on Friday, and, weather permitting, intended to send up a helicopter on Saturday morning. The hikers' families have been notified, and Israel's consul in Santiago was at the scene, Israel Radio reported. The Puyehue National Park is located in the Andes, in Chile's Los Lagos region. It covers 1,068 square kilometers. The park is dominated by the Puyehue volcano and the Cordon Caulle. Exactly one year ago, a Chilean search and rescue team located four Israeli hikers who had been missing for a week after losing their way in Chile's Villa Rica National Park. The hikers - three men and a woman - were evacuated by helicopter to safety. All four were unhurt, and their only physical complaint was hunger, as a result of running out of provisions. In related news, it was released for publication that a 12-year-old Israeli boy died on Friday of injuries he sustained during a skiing accident in northern Italy. The boy was seriously injured in the head after he collided with a ski lift pole in a Club Med resort in Cervinia, located in the Italian Alps. The boy was evacuated by helicopter to a hospital in Torino, but died of his injuries during surgery. Israel's consul in Italy, who was in touch with the boy's father, was coordinating with Italian authorities the transfer the body to Israel for burial. Herb Keinon contributed to this report.