Bad Weather, SAR Team Evacuates the Body of ATR 42-500 via Land Route

MAKASSAR - A joint SAR team deployed 34 expert personnel to evacuate the bodies of ATR 42-500 victims on the extreme cliff of Mount Bulusaraung Pangkajene and Kepulauan (Pangkep) through the land route, after bad weather canceled the use of a helicopter.

Entering the third day of operations, the joint SAR team prioritized the evacuation of the bodies of victims of the ATR 42-500 aircraft accident belonging to Indonesia Air Transport in the Bulu Saraung area, Pangkep Regency, South Sulawesi. Extreme terrain with vertical slopes requires personnel to use special ground evacuation techniques.

Head of Basarnas Makassar Operations Section Andi Sultan explained that the plan to use the helicopter was canceled due to weather fluctuations that endangered the flight.

"The air evacuation option is not possible. We are deploying a team consisting of 34 personnel to reach the discovery point through the land route," said Andi at the Tompo Bulu Post, Balocci District, Monday, January 19.

This team brought high angle rescue equipment to pull the victim from the base of the cliff to the north peak of Bulusaraung.

In addition to focusing on evacuation, three other teams expanded the radius of search using the electronic search and rescue (e-SAR) method. The search was carried out to ensure that all the manifests and debris of the aircraft were not missed in the hilly area with dense vegetation.

The meteorological conditions at the location are reported to be still uncertain. Basarnas continues to coordinate with the South Sulawesi BMKG to monitor cloud movement and rainfall intensity.

Andi hopes that the atmospheric conditions will improve during the day so that the mobilization of the bodies from the extreme point to the main post is not hampered by the risk of landslides or slippery rock terrain.