Emergency services received a signal Sunday that three climbers had gone missing in a snow storm while descending Mount Kamen on February 24 at an altitude of 2,400 meters (7,900 feet) above sea level. The emergencies ministry dispatched a helicopter to help the rescue effort, but the aircraft could not fly until recently due to unfavorable weather conditions.
The regional department of the Emergency Situations Ministry said rescuers found Sergei Lopukhov safe and sound Tuesday some time after he made an emergency call. The two other missing climbers rejoined their team two hours earlier.
The mountaineers were part of a group of nine tourists from Moscow, Vladivostok and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky who attempted February 18 to ascend Eurasia's highest volcano, Klyuchevskoi, but due to the volcano's increased activity they decided to climb the nearby Mount Kamen instead.
The six climbers who had sent the emergency signal Sunday had taken shelter in a hut at an altitude of 1,800 meters (5,900 ft) until rescuers found them.
The ministry said all the climbers felt well and were on their way to the settlement of Klyuchi 30 kilometers (19 miles) away from the mountain.
