A 61-year-old British hiker has been found dead in Spain’s Picos de Europa National Park following a large-scale search and rescue operation, after he reported feeling disorientated and exhausted
A British walker has been discovered dead in Spain following his disappearance earlier this week. The 61-year-old was reported missing on Thursday near the Canal de Moeño, in the municipality of Posada de Valdeón, situated within the Picos de Europa National Park.
His body was recovered from the Moeño canal, according to sources from the 112 Emergency Centre of Castilla y León. The Civil Guard will handle the retrieval of the remains, Europa Press reports.
The Civil Protection and Emergency Agency of the Junta de Castilla y León had mounted an extensive search operation to find the Briton, deploying a rescue helicopter amongst other resources.
The walker himself had initially contacted emergency services, phoning to say he felt confused and exhausted while making his way back from a trek towards Caín, reports the Mirror.
A spokesperson for a regional government-run emergency response coordination centre said at the time: “We are coordinating a rescue that began at 7.11pm on Thursday after receiving a 999 call from the Castilla and Leon province 999 ops centre, informing a British mountaineer aged 61 had become disorientated when he was doing a mountain route in the Picos de Europa.
“At that moment, he didn’t know where he was, the weather conditions were bad, with wind, low clouds and intermittent rain, and he said he was exhausted.”
The news comes after we reported how a hiker tragically killed in a suspected bear attack left a poignant voicemail for his father just moments before disaster struck. Anthony Pollio, 33, was on a solo hike during a two-week trip when he mysteriously vanished.
The seasoned adventurer reportedly rang his dad while trekking a mountain trail and told him he loved him. Days later, search teams discovered his body in a remote woodland area.
The heartbreaking incident took place at Glacier National Park in Montana, USA, where Pollio had intended to hike towards the Mount Brown Fire Lookout. According to the National Park Service, Pollio had “communicated plans” to complete the route before he disappeared.
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