A member of a party rock climbing on Ulsanbawi in Seoraksan Mountain in Sokcho, Gangwon, fell to death, and three others who were stranded were rescued. Recently, rescues, cardiac arrests, and fall and injury accidents have followed one after another on Seoraksan Mountain and other major mountains in Gangwon, prompting calls for caution about mountain safety.
According to the Seoraksan National Park Office and others on the 16th, at about 1:55 p.m. on the 14th, a man in his 50s, identified as A, fell while rock climbing near Ulsanbawi in Seoraksan Mountain. A was rescued by a mountain rescue team but died.
At the time of the accident, three men and women in their 50s who set out to rock climb with A were also stranded on the rock face and then rescued. It was reported that as A fell, the rope dropped downward, making it difficult for the companions to move.
Video provided by the Seoraksan National Park Office and reported by Channel A the day before captured the tense moments of the rescue. In the footage, the mountain rescue team uses a drone to search various parts of the Ulsanbawi cliff to locate the stranded climbers. Some climbers sat down on the rock face to wait for rescue, while another was stranded midway up the wall.
After confirming the location of the stranded, the rescue team approached the rock face and carried out the operation. A member of the Seoraksan Mountain Special Mountain Rescue Team climbed the wall to reach a stranded climber, and after about four hours of work, all three were rescued. The companions, except for A, were said to have no serious health issues.
Mountain accidents have continued to occur recently in the Gangwon region. At about 7:14 a.m. on the 16th, a Dutch woman in her 20s requested rescue from fire authorities after injuring her ankle while descending near the Heeungak Shelter in Seoraksan Mountain in Buk-myeon, Inje County. The site of the accident was a mountainous area with dense trees and difficult vehicle access. The Gangwon 119 Special Response Unit deployed a fire helicopter, lowered rescuers, and used a hoist to rescue the woman and transport her to a hospital.
At about 2:30 p.m. on the 14th, a hiker in his 60s at Bongjeongam in Seoraksan Mountain in Yongdae-ri, Buk-myeon, Inje County, showed symptoms including paralysis of the left arm and leg and was airlifted. At about 1:09 p.m. that day, a hiker in his 70s collapsed on Dutasan in Samhwa-dong, Donghae. The hiker, in cardiac arrest, was transported by helicopter to a hospital but died. Police are investigating the exact circumstances of the accident.
Also at about 7:26 a.m. that day, a hiker in his 60s heading toward Dokjugol Valley from the Namseorak Visitor Center in Seomyeon, Yangyang County, in Seoraksan Mountain tumbled about 10 meters down. The hiker suffered head and leg injuries and was transported by helicopter to a hospital for treatment.
On the 11th, rescues and a fatality also occurred in the Seoraksan Mountain area. At about 8:12 p.m. that day, an Australian hiker in his 40s got lost while hiking in Seorak-dong, Sokcho, in Seoraksan Mountain. After a nighttime search, the mountain rescue team found the hiker near Geumgang Cave and turned the person over to the lodging about three hours after the report. The hiker showed temporary dehydration symptoms but was later reported to have recovered.
On the same day at about 6:54 p.m., a hiker in his 60s collapsed while hiking near Bongjeongam in Seoraksan Mountain in Yongdae-ri, Buk-myeon, Inje County. The rescue team performed CPR for about two hours but the person died. At about 5:07 p.m., a hiker in his 30s became stranded while descending near Madeungnyeong in Seoraksan Mountain in Yongdae-ri, Buk-myeon, Inje County. About nine hours and 30 minutes after the report, the rescue team descended with the hiker.
On the 29th of last month, a man in his 70s was also found in cardiac arrest while rock climbing on Ulsanbawi and died.
Fire authorities are urging that, because mountainous terrain imposes major constraints on rescue operations, hikers should check the weather and course difficulty before setting out and avoid strenuous hikes or rock climbing without adequate safety equipment.