Khabarovsk Krai, Russia – Emergency workers from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations rescued geologists who were sinking under ice.

In the Tuguro-Chumikansky District, at the confluence of the Uda and Shevli rivers, two all-terrain vehicles carrying three employees of a geological exploration company fell through the ice.

A Mi-8 helicopter from the Ministry of Emergency Situations was dispatched to the scene. The victims spent 17 hours on the roofs of the partially submerged vehicles.

The rescue operation was challenging. Strong air currents from the helicopter’s rotor, the fragile ice, and the river’s current posed a risk of further collapse.

The men were lifted aboard using a helicopter winch. They were given hot tea and transported to the village of Fevralsk.

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