A 28-year-old Ukrainian man has been found dead in the mountains of Romania: what is known
This was reported by the rescue service of the Romanian province of Maramureș.
At around 5.00 pm on 18 March, border guards stopped a Ukrainian citizen at the foot of the mountain. He told them of another Ukrainian man suffering from severe weakness and swelling in his leg, who had completely lost the ability to move after walking a hundred metres into Romanian territory.
According to his companion, the injured man had remained on a makeshift ‘bed’ of conifer branches to protect himself from direct contact with the snow and hypothermia.
Mountain rescuers were dispatched to save him, but the operation was complicated by the rugged terrain, snow cover and falling temperatures as evening set in. Ultimately, the Ukrainian man was found dead.
“It is hard to understand how a 28-year-old man decided to set off into the mountains in such difficult conditions — without even basic equipment, with bare ankles and wearing trainers. This situation once again highlights just how unforgiving the mountain environment can be without proper preparation, especially in the face of the stress and despair that drove him to set out on this journey,” wrote the Romanian rescue service.
By morning, the rescuers were to have brought the deceased’s body down to the foot of the mountain.
In Romania, there have been numerous reports of men being found who had illegally crossed the border from the Ukrainian side to avoid conscription. For the most part, such cases occurred in the mountains: the men lost their way and called the Romanian rescue services.
