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New Zealand climbers rescued from Solomon Islands' highest mountain

From ABC Australia · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • Two New Zealand climbers, Keanu Isaksson (25) and Luca Zylstra (19), were rescued from a steep ravine on Mount Popomanaseu in the Solomon Islands after being stranded for six days.
  • A weather window allowed a helicopter to reach the pair, who were located at 1,828 meters, enabling them to be airlifted to Honiara.
  • The climbers had summitted the mountain with local guides but became stranded during their descent due to torrential rain and a path that crossed into a different tribal area.

Two young New Zealand adventurers have been safely rescued from a perilous situation on the Solomon Islands' highest peak, Mount Popomanaseu, after being trapped for six days in a steep ravine.

They instructed the boys to fell some trees to create some space for the helicopter.

— Denise HollIsaksson's mother described the instructions given to the climbers to facilitate their rescue.

Keanu Isaksson, 25, and Luca Zylstra, 19, were airlifted to safety on Tuesday morning. Their rescue was made possible by a brief window of clear weather that allowed a helicopter to reach their location at 1,828 meters up the volcanic mountain. The pair had been dropped food and a radio, and were instructed to clear space by felling trees to allow a cargo net to be lowered for their extraction.

The friends had embarked on the challenging climb seeking adventure and as preparation for a future expedition to the Amazon. They successfully reached the summit of the 2,335-meter Mount Popomanaseu with the assistance of guides from a local tribe. However, the descent proved treacherous.

The boys had their own equipment with knives that could do the tree work and they were able to climb the net and get flown back to Honiara.

— Denise HollHoll detailed the actions taken by the climbers to enable their extraction.

According to Isaksson's mother, Denise Holl, the guides could not accompany them down as the descent route entered a different tribal territory. Torrential rain then made the terrain impassable, forcing the climbers to camp on a rock overlooking a waterfall for nearly a week. They were fortunate that the river did not rise further, which could have swept them away.

My son and Luca have done lots of adventures together and are very close, and they would have taken very good care of each other.

— Denise HollHoll spoke about the strong bond between the two climbers.

Ms. Holl expressed immense relief, describing the past week as an "emotional toll" on her family. She conveyed that both climbers were "nonchalant and emotional" upon their rescue, and that they had looked after each other during their ordeal. The successful rescue operation followed initial unsuccessful attempts due to heavy rain and the helicopter's inability to land directly at the stranded climbers' location.

I'm sure they've got quite a bit of footage and quite a few stories to tell.

— Denise HollHoll anticipated the climbers would have many experiences to share after their ordeal.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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