Three men entered the Mengxinnao Nature Reserve in Shanxi on foot and got lost and got trapped. The fire rescue team searched and rescued them safely overnight.

China News Service, Jinzhong, September 26 (Lu Qiguo, Li Longqi) Three men hiked into Shanxi Mengxinao Nature Reserve for fun. They could not find the way down the mountain after dark and called the police for help when their mobile phone battery was about to run out. The Zuoquan County Fire Rescue Brigade organized a search and rescue overnight and safely rescued the three trapped men in the early morning of the 26th.

The three trapped men are all young people in their 20s. On the 25th, they entered the Mengxinao Nature Reserve from the Guaier Town side and originally planned to go down the mountain from the Liaoyang Town side. Due to the slow pace of hiking, we were unable to descend the mountain before dark. At about 21 o'clock, seeing that the battery of his mobile phone was about to run out, one of the men called 119 for help.

When calling the police, the three people did not provide much valuable information. They only said that they were at the top of Mengxinao Mountain and could not go down. Their mobile phones were almost out of battery. The police officer instructed the caller to add the location on WeChat, but the other party's phone suddenly lost power.

Among the three people, only one carried a hiking bag, two hiking poles and a tent. He did not carry a flashlight or power bank. After calling the police, not sure whether the firefighters would be able to find them quickly, the three began to set up a tent so that they could hide in the tent to keep out the cold if they were trapped all night.

Firefighters protected three trapped people down the mountain. Photo by Li Longqi

After receiving the alarm, Tie Jingwei, political commissar of the Zuoquan County Fire Rescue Brigade, led the team and first went to the Ziyanggou Forest Fire Prevention Inspection Station in Liaoyang Town to check the surveillance and determined that the three men did not enter the mountain from the Liaoyang Town side.

A few minutes later, the families of the three trapped persons rushed to the Ziyanggou Forest Fire Prevention Checkpoint. One of the family members said that at about 19:00 that day, his son called him and asked him to wait at Xiaojie Village near the Ziyanggou Forest Fire Prevention Checkpoint, and then there was no contact again.

After understanding the situation, the firefighters drove up the mountain, accompanied by police officers from the Liaoyang Police Station of the Zuoquan County Public Security Bureau and the families of the trapped persons.

At about 23:40, firefighters arrived at the top of the Mengxinao Nature Reserve. After the vehicle was parked, the firefighters used a megaphone to call the name of one of the trapped persons, who responded immediately. Through the dialogue, the firefighters determined that the trapped person was located about 200 meters away in a straight line and was in good health.

Many firefighters from the Zuoquan County Fire Rescue Brigade are familiar with the terrain in this area because they rescued a trapped woman in this area on August 10. Firefighters said that the location of the three trapped persons was in a cliff area, but there was a small road leading to the parking place of the rescue vehicle. However, people unfamiliar with the situation would not know it, and it would be difficult to find it at night without the help of lights.

At about 23:50, Tie Jingwei led the firefighters to start climbing. Everyone gritted their teeth and quickly climbed the mountain, and it only took about 10 minutes to see the trapped people. Under the protection of firefighters, the three trapped persons were safely rescued at around 0:00 a.m. on the 26th.

The fire department reminds: Before hiking, you should plan the route and time in advance, choose mature routes, and avoid entering unopened areas. In mountainous areas, mobile phone signals are weak, so you should download offline maps in advance to preserve the power of your mobile phone. If you get lost or trapped, you should call the police immediately. Do not wait until the phone is about to lose power to avoid delaying rescue due to communication interruption and unknown location. At the same time, you should wait for rescue in a safe place and do not move blindly, especially not close to dangerous areas such as cliffs and steep slopes. (over)