AALO, Jun 28: The recovery team which had been air-dropped at the site of the wreckage of the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) An-32 aircraft on 12 June is still stuck at the site, braving hostile weather and feeding on ration that had been air-dropped for them on that day.
The team continues to be there, at a height of 12,000 ft, 17 days after the strenuous exercise of recovering the 13 dead bodies and the aircraft’s black box.
The weather is not at all conducive to lifting the team, comprising nine men from the IAF, civilian mountaineer Taka Tamut and two of his associates deputed by the Shi Yomi district administration to guide the team in case the weather continues to deter chopper service to the area.
The terrain is treacherous for foot march to be undertaken in the monsoon as climbing up and down many a mountain is slippery, and the routes along the dense forests house venomous snakes, wild animals and insects.
At present, it is a toss-up between the weather clearing by Saturday or Sunday (as per the weather forecast) and things turning worse if the weather plays spoilsport and the ration commodities are exhausted, which might force the team to trek back on foot. (DIPRO)
