A survivor of the blizzard that killed a British woman and four others in Chilean Patagonia worried tourists worried about bad weather conditions ahead of the trek, but were told it was “normal” and they could continue.
Tom Player, a composer based in London, told the watcher that during the fierce blizzard about 30 volunteers worked together to try to save the hikers.
Nine people disappeared on Monday in the Torres del Painer Reserve in Paronia, a popular tourist destination, amid heavy rains and winds that reached up to 120mph (H).
Four were rescued from a remote area in the mountains, but it was confirmed on Tuesday that two Mexicans, two Germans and a British woman, Victoria Bond, 40, died.
Player, who traveled to Chile with four friends including the bond, said that there were no parks in the park that came to the staff of the camp and we told that it was normal. “
He said: “Absolutely anyone should be allowed in. It’s too dangerous for mountain rescue teams so why is it open to the public?”
The bond, which is from Truro, died along with Cristina Calvillo Tovar and Julian Garcia Pimentel from Mexico and Nadine Lichey and Andreas von pein from Germany.
Chilean authorities have been criticized by hikers for suggesting that tourists have disappeared near the Park Perros camp.
Player, 39, said: “We are constantly trying to set the record straight. Admitting that anyone is missing, four out of five people are on the way.
“I saw three of my efforts going up. Our friend Victoria … was in the way. To admit they were gone was a great shock to all.”
The player described the storm as “absolutely brutal”, with cold temperatures, downpours, damage and snow.
He said: “We saw a forecast that gave us a head, gusts of more than 100km/h [60mph]maintained high winds throughout the day.
“I don’t think we’re expecting blizzard-like conditions, it’s been getting worse all day. We left around 5.30am in the morning, there was heavy rain, a lot of wind.
“We were angry, even with all four quitting. I was not prepared for the conditions of the mountaineering
The player said that the hiking group included a head of Er, junior doctors, a helicopter paramedic and a psychologist who all helped in the rescue effort.
“The rescue effort is one of those moments when you know you have a lot of faith in people and people.”
He added: “There was a total unpreparedness and lack of emergency planning. We made a stretcher out of a bunch of hiking poles, gaffer tape, a tent bed and a bed.”
Piller said he ran into other hikers in his search for the bond. “A staff member passed out for kindness. He was amazing, he and I ran up the hill.
“We found a person, who later turned out to be Cristina [Calvillo Tovar]who is hypothermic. He gives her gloves and clothes and tries to walk with her to get her help. I saw a man and later told him it was Julian [Garcia Pimentel]who died.
“I ran up the hill and found someone else, who later turned out to be one of the German women. She was trying to help him and I stayed with her drinking hot water.”
A mountain rescue team eventually found the bond and, despite efforts to resuscitate him, he was pronounced dead.
The player added: “I went there looking for my friend and I couldn’t find him, it’s very difficult to live like that. I have no idea how many people are upset by this brutal cold.”
Bond, a PR manager for visiting the Isles of Scilly tourism organization, is a “beautiful man Adrian, who works at the Roseland Festival in Corneland.
Euan rodger, executive vice-chaird of Isles of Skilly, said: “He brings life, energy, and an infectious joy to work with.”
Mauricio Ruiz, the regional director of Cana Corporation in Chile, which employs rangers in the park, told the local news in the evening of the president of Chile.