A US tourist has died in an ice cave collapse while on a tour of Breidamerkurjokull glacier in Iceland, police said.
First responders spent Sunday searching the glacier for anyone else who may have been trapped after the ice cave collapsed. The search was complex, requiring ice picks and chainsaws to clear the collapsed ice. Rescuers called off the search on Monday after removing the debris and finding no one.
“It has come to light that no one was hidden under the ice,” said the local police force, Logreglan a Sudurlandi.
The partner of the man who died was taken via helicopter to the hospital, but she was in a stable condition, although injured. She was also a US citizen.
The police initially thought that two more people were missing under the ice because the company in charge of the group tour reported that 25 people attended. However, after reviewing the company’s records, investigators discovered that 23 people were on the tour, and 21 were reported as uninjured, police said.
According to Jon Thor Viglundsson, a spokesman for ICE-SAR, a volunteer search and rescue organization, first responders were notified of a group of tourists being trapped under an ice cave collapse at 3 p.m. local time. The search lasted until midnight Sunday and resumed at 7 a.m. local time on Monday until authorities called off the search.
Chief Superintendent Rúnarsson said, “Ice cave tours happen almost the whole year,” and there was no reason for the tour not to have taken place.
“These are experienced and powerful mountain guides who run these trips. It’s always possible to be unlucky. I trust these people to assess when it’s safe to go—when it’s safe or not safe to go, and good work has been done there over time. This is a living land, so anything can happen.”
The police chief said the couple was standing in a ravine between cave entrances, reported to have been around three to five meters deep, when the ice cave collapsed.
“The police in the south would like to thank all the responders involved in the search and rescue operation,” Logreglan a Sudurlandi police said. “It shows and proves in projects like this that we have powerful solution-oriented people to be in charge when there is danger.”
Despite ice cave collapse, Breidamerkurjökull glacier remains popular
Located in Vatnajokull National Park, Breidamerkurjokull glacier is famous for its gorgeous ice caves, which attract tourists year-round. It is the largest glacier in Europe, and the glacier sheet forms its famous caves.
The ice caves’ uniquely beautiful blue color spectrum creates extraordinary images. Iceland is known for its many geological wonders, including glaciers and volcanos.
A volcano erupted in southwest Iceland a few months ago, but it was found not to be related to this incident.
In 2019, a piece of the glacier broke off and fell into the surrounding lagoon, causing a large wave to surge at park tourists nearby. The tourists ran to higher ground for safety.
