Rescue operations have resumed in southern Iceland as dozens of members of the emergency services scramble to locate two people who remain missing after an ice cave partly collapsed, killing one person.
A group of 25 tourists, made up of people from several nationalities, were on a guided tour of Breiðamerkurjökull glacier on Sunday when part of the cave collapsed, police said on social media.
Four members of the group were trapped under the ice. Rescuers found two of them, one of whom died of their injuries at the scene. The other person found was taken to hospital and is reportedly in a stable condition.
Emergency services received a call about the collapse shortly before 3pm local time (1600 BST) on Sunday, setting in motion a rescue that involved more than 100 people. The rugged terrain complicated efforts to transport equipment up to the glacier, meaning rescuers were largely limited to breaking through the ice with chainsaws and ice picks, according to the public broadcaster RÚV.
One tourist who had visited the cave just before its collapse told RÚV that the cave was between three and five metres deep.
As darkness fell, rescuers were forced to pause. “A large number of rescuers and responders have taken part in the operation,” police said, adding that the conditions were difficult.
By 7am on Monday, dozens of rescuers were back on the site, according to RÚV. The site manager told the broadcaster that efforts were being made to protect the rescuers as the conditions had been deemed unsafe on the glacier.
The crystal-blue ice cave of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier tongue has long been an attraction for tourists from around the world. It flows from Vatnajökull, Iceland’s largest glacier. Historical accounts suggest the glacier tongue advanced towards the Atlantic Ocean until around the turn of the 19th century. According to the US Geological Survey, it has been in full retreat since about 1930.
The collapse was not believed to be related to a volcanic eruption in south-west Iceland on Friday, about 185 miles (300km) from the glacier.
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Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
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