Russian fishermen fishing on ice in Sakhalin (Stock) (Image: Social media)
Russian Emergencies Ministry officials have launched an urgent mission to rescue 200 people trapped on a sheet of frozen ice.
The fishermen in the Sakhalin Region are trapped on the frozen ice in the Sea of Okhotsk, according to reports.
They are believed to be 700 meters from the shore near the village of Lesnoye.
The rescue mission consists of 11 specialists and 6 units of equipment from the Russian Emergencies Ministry, including the Khivus hovercraft.
Cracks appear in the ice in Sakhalin (Image: Social media)
A crack in the ice began to form on the evening of February 28 on both sides, after which it broke up into small floes.
A large group of fishermen on the ice were able to reach the shore on their own using improvised means – sleds and snowmobiles.
However, many did not make it in time and remained on the broken ice floe, trying to find bypass routes.
Fishermen were warned about the beginning of the ice’s destruction by a flare gun, but not everyone responded right away.
Many remained sitting on their chairs and refused to move and throw away their catch, according to eyewitness accounts.
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Currently, the Polyakov Search and Rescue Squad of the Sakhalin Region Emergencies Ministry and GIMS specialists are working at the site.
The situation remains tense, with rescue operations ongoing.
A similar situation occurred on Sakhalin on February 12. Then 139 people were evacuated from an ice floe.
Some of them were taken by a Mi-8 helicopter, and some by a Khivus hovercraft.