Russian climber rescued from Mayon

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines – Ignoring warnings and the six-kilometer permanent danger zone imposed around the crater of the volcano, a Russian tourist attempted to climb Mayon by himself last Sunday but had to be rescued after he broke his leg.

At around 6 p.m. yesterday, rescuers spotted Mark Yuchyugaev near the crater. The rescue team of the Philippine National Red Cross started to ascend the 2,462-meter volcano from Barangay Mabinit in Legazpi City at 6:30 a.m. yesterday, after the Russian was able to relay his coordinates.

The coordinates indicated a location at the lower portion of Camp 2 or about 1,200 meters from the foot of Mayon.

A sudden eruption last May 7 killed four foreign climbers and a Filipino guide and injured 22 others.

In their latest report to Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (APSEMO) chief Cedric Daep, said it would take the rescuers at least 20 minutes to pick up the Russian and start bringing him down to the foot of Mayon.

“We told them (rescuers) to carefully bring down the victim because he could not walk due to his broken leg,” Daep told The STAR.

Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said earlier the rescue team would also assess the health condition of Yuchyugaev and “then the rescue team can decide the best way to bring him down to safety.”

He also said that an Air Force helicopter is ready for use should it be needed in the rescue operation.

The APSEMO has also reserved an ambulance for the transport of the Russian to the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital.

Daep said a five-man team is also on standby at the field command post in Barangay Miisi in Daraga town.

Jukes Nues, operation officer of APSEMO, said his office received a distress call from Bert Mirandilla, an employee of the provincial government, last Tuesday that an injured Russian was stranded at the slope of the volcano and was asking for help.

One Gerry Delana of Barangay Busay, Daraga, Albay told disaster officials here that he was with Yuchyugaev before the Russian got stranded at the upper slopes and that the foreigner wanted to set up a tent at the vicinity of Cagsawa Ruins but was not allowed by caretakers there.

“He even got my cellphone number that’s why he was able to call me and ask for help because he was already stuck at some 1,700 meters elevation of Mayon,” Delana told disaster officials.

But Josephus Ojano, Bicol operations officer of the Bureau of Immigration, said his office did not have any record of the 28-year-old Russian, who is reportedly a resident of Serbia.

‘We already searched his name in our online records, but we could not find a name such as that he gave to the people he met before he was reported injured at the slope of Mayon,” Ojano said.