The Fire and Fury Corps of the Army carried out a night-time casualty evacuation (CASEVAC) at 17,000 feet in Ladakh on Thursday after receiving a request to evacuate a South Korean national, Hyun Woo Kim, and his wife, stranded at Kongmarula Pass.
Following the rescue, the Army later confirmed through a Fire and Fury Corps X post that one of the mountaineers lost his life after the rescue operation.
"Fire and Fury Corps expresses heartfelt condolences to the family of the mountaineer who unfortunately lost his life," the Army said in a statement.
A CASEVAC, or casualty evacuation, involves the rapid transportation of critically ill or injured individuals from a hazardous zone to a medical facility. It can be conducted by both ground and air, depending on the circumstances.
According to an official statement, the evacuation request was received at around 8:05 pm. The location, at an altitude of over 17,000 feet amid snow-covered peaks, posed significant challenges for the rescue mission.
The stranded couple, who fell critically ill during a mountaineering expedition near Kongmarula, required urgent evacuation. To reach the couple, the mission required precise Night Vision Goggles (NVG) to land at an unprepared helipad, demanding exceptional piloting skills and situational awareness, the statement added.
Within 15 minutes of receiving the call, at 8:20 pm, the squadron launched helicopters to execute the operation. By 9:15 pm, the rescue team successfully landed at the site and evacuated the foreign nationals by air. The couple was subsequently handed over to medical authorities at SNM Hospital in Leh for further treatment.
However, following the operation, it was later confirmed that one of the South Korean nationals had died.
Earlier, the Indian Army organised a Medical & Dental Camp under Operation Sadbhavna at Ladakh's Lamochan Village to reaffirm its commitment to the well-being of people in remote and high-altitude regions. A total of 178 villagers benefited from the medical camp, which provided consultations, dental check-ups, essential medicines & health awareness sessions.
Operation Sadbhavana is a programme by the Indian Army aimed at fostering goodwill and building trust with communities in conflict-affected regions, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and parts of the Northeast. It aims to improve the lives of people by implementing development projects focusing on education, healthcare, infrastructure, and women and youth empowerment.