Overview

• Both the hiker and his Chihuahua were flown to a Valais hospital after specialists abseiled into the barely visible crevasse and completed the extraction.
• Rescuers said the dog’s unwavering vigilance compensated for the improvised radio call’s lack of precise coordinates.
• Rescue teams had to locate a tiny, snow-covered opening on the glacier surface that initially eluded visual detection.
• An amateur walkie-talkie call alerted bystanders but provided no GPS data, underscoring communication challenges in alpine emergencies.
• Authorities are reviewing the operation as a case study in alpine rescue coordination, improvised communication and the growing hazards of hidden glacier crevasses.