Lima, Sep 9 (EFE).- The High Mountain Rescue Unit of the Peruvian police on Thursday is searching for a Spaniard who disappeared five days ago in the snow-covered Huayhuash mountain chain, authorities said.
Two patrols, with a total of 10 men, were dispatched to the Huayhuash access and exit routes to try and locate Ignacio Garcia Romanillos, police told Efe.
The search is being led by the head of the rescue unit, Maj. Max Trujillo, but it is not a simple task for the rescuers to keep in touch with each other because there is no cell phone coverage in the region, police said.
Huayhuash, known as the "stairway to heaven," is one of the preferred peaks among climbers wanting to make treks at an average of about 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) above sea level. The route mountaineers usually take through the zone is 165 kilometers (102 miles) long, a hike that can be completed in a week and takes one by lakes and snow-capped mountains.
The snowy peaks of the Cordillera Blanca are visited by climbers from all over the world, but they are also areas of very high risk because of the occurrence of avalanches and the possibility for fatal climbing accidents.
In July, Spanish mountaineers Daniel Crespo, 27, and Alejandro Bonilla, 26, died in an avalanche on snow-covered Mt. Chacraraju, located in the same area of northern Peru, when they were climbing a very complex and dangerous wall of rock.
