The Forest Police and the Fire Department started a search and rescue operation on the Pináculo and Folhadal route, in São Vicente, at 18:30 last night.
According to JM, two tourists got lost in a hard-to-reach area after leaving the marked path and were unable to find their way back to the pedestrian route. A Civil Protection source stated that rescue teams were dispatched immediately after the alert and are still on the ground, working to locate and assist the victims.
The tourists began their 17km journey from the Encumeada area, a walk that passes through Lombo do Mouro, Pináculo, Levada do Norte, and Levada da Serra and is known for its beautiful landscapes.
This is the second rescue carried out by the PSP’s Mountain Search and Rescue Service in just four days. Last Sunday, a 29-year-old German woman went missing in Ribeira da Janela, specifically in the Galhano area of Porto Moniz, prompting the mobilisation of several emergency service teams, including the police rescue unit.
By December of last year, over its five years of work in the region, this brigade had been involved in 15 incidents affecting 21 people. In total, 14 of them were rescued alive.
The number of rescues in Madeira’s mountains keeps climbing. Last year, according to DIÁRIO, there were 222 incidents on hiking trails, prompting the mobilisation of rescue teams, mainly from the region’s fire brigades. An increase of almost 30% compared to the year before.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
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