For the second day, search efforts continue for the famous 34-year-old Georgian alpinist, Archil Badriashvili, on Shkhelda Peak in Svaneti. He embarked on an expedition to Shkhelda four days ago with fellow mountaineers from Svaneti - Nariman and Avto Japaridzes, and Beshken Pilpan. Yesterday, as the group was descending from the peak, the weather deteriorated, and it is believed that a rockfall occurred near Archil Badriashvili, causing him to fall off the ridge.
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Based on information provided to Mtis Ambebi Georgia's emergency management service was notified by Russia about the need for urgent assistance on Shkhelda, as the climbers with Archil Badriashvili could only connect to a Russian frequency.
Employees of the Mestia rescue service and local climbers set out for Shkhelda after receiving the message, around 17:00-18:00. Locals told Mtis Ambebi that they requested helicopter assistance yesterday, and although the weather improved on the Becho side, in the direction of Shkhelda Peak, making it possible to fly, the Ministry of Internal Affairs helicopter was not deployed in the rescue operation.
"Yesterday, we agreed that the helicopter would arrive at 6 a.m., but it was late and didn’t depart from Tbilisi until 8 a.m. Soon after, it entered the valley and evacuated all three of the climbers who were with Archil.
We assumed it would return for a second flight to start searching for Archil, but it didn’t. It turned out that it had run out of fuel. After 8 hours, a vehicle arrived with more fuel.
Once they refueled, the helicopter immediately took off again and returned just a few minutes ago. They told us they saw Archil lying on the ground, but they couldn’t reach him. The weather has worsened again, with rain and thunder. Everyone who can help in Svaneti is in the mountains, trying to save Archil.
Archil is an experienced climber. We know he was wearing a special hat, had a backpack, and is a doctor, so there’s a chance he could still survive. In previous years, he was lost on Shkhara for 16 days, hung on a rope for 4 days on Ushba, and was rescued both times," a local resident told Mtis Ambebi.
Regarding the incident on Shkhelda, the Emergency Situations Management Service issued a statement today at 12:00.
Firefighters and rescuers from the Emergency Management Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Svaneti safely transported the three mountaineers from Shkhelda Peak to Mestia with the help of a Border Police helicopter.
According to the mountaineers, one of the individuals on the peak likely died as a result of the rockfall.
Due to the deteriorating weather conditions, the remaining three mountaineers were unable to descend on their own and requested assistance from the rescue team.
Upon receiving the notification, a rescue operation was organized, involving the Border Police helicopter of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the firefighters-rescuers from the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti Fire-Rescue Department of the Emergency Management Service's Main Division for Special Situations Response.
The search for the missing mountaineer on Shkhelda Peak is ongoing and intensive," stated the Emergency Situations Management Service.
When asked by Mtis Ambebi why the Ministry of Internal Affairs helicopter was not involved in the rescue operation yesterday, a media relations representative from the Emergency Situations Management Service explained that "the meteorological conditions were extremely difficult, with rain and hail."
This morning, after one flight, no information was provided as to why the helicopter could no longer participate in the rescue operation until a vehicle carrying aviation fuel arrived in Becho.
Following the crash of a Border Police helicopter in Gudauri on July 29, 2022, which killed eight people on board, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia purchased three new H145 helicopters from Airbus Helicopters for 26.5 million euros. Two of these helicopters have already arrived in Georgia. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, these helicopters are distinguished by their ability to operate at high altitudes and are fully equipped with mountaineering and rescue equipment.
Shkhelda is located in the Mestia municipality, on the main ridge of the Svaneti Caucasus, at the head of the Ushba glacier. Shkhelda has five peaks: the eastern peak at 4322 m, the central peak at 4310 m, and the western peaks at 4280 m, 4,300 m, and 4129 m above sea level. Soviet alpinists first climbed Shkhelda in 1936. In 1977, a group of climbers from Russia died while ascending the central Shkhelda.
