Missing paraglider's body found, airlifted after 10 days from Himachal's Kangra
PTC News Desk: The body of Polish paraglider Andrez, who went missing after taking off from Bir near Dharamshala, was airlifted from Dhauladhar ranges in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district on Thursday morning.
On October 23, Andrez launched himself from Bir. According to them, the rescue operation lasted 10 days.
"The body was found on Tuesday but could not be lifted due to the difficult terrain and cliffs despite several attempts by local teams, police and SDRF, trekkers from Manali's mountaineering institute, and other professionals," Kangra Superintendent of Police Shalini Agnihotri stated.
"Two specialised units of the Army were requisitioned and an eight-member team, including five from the Army and three from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), travelled four kilometres on tough hills and airlifted the body to Yol near Dharamshala today," the official further said.
The embassy and the paraglider's family members have been informed, according to police.
On October 23, four Polish nationals took off from Bir in the free-flying category and went missing near Dharamshala.
Rescue teams from the Kangra district located three of the four foreigners and rescued them from the Indrunag area near Dharamshala on October 24. However, Andrez remained missing, prompting search operations to be intensified.
His daughter posted preliminary information about the missing paraglider on social media.
According to the administration, trained gliders can fly, compete, and participate in adventurous activities in Bir-Billing, India's paragliding capital. Bir-Billing has also established a global reputation in the paragliding world.
- With inputs from agencies