A foreign tourist was reported missing after becoming separated from his friends in Reykjadalur valley near Hveragerdi, south Iceland, yesterday afternoon. Search and rescue teams were called out and he was found late in the evening.

ICE-SAR trucks during the eruption in Grímsvötn. Photo by Robertas Mickevicius.

The man had gone bathing in the hot stream in Reykjadalur with his traveling companion while two friends of theirs were waiting in the car. The bathers became separated and after some time, the tourists asked for assistance in finding their friend, a press release from ICE-SAR reads.

All search and rescue crews of ICE-SAR in south Iceland, approximately 60 people, were called out as well as eight dog crews as the man was not warmly dressed and unfamiliar with the area.

He eventually found his way to one of the search and rescue trucks himself. It was positioned with blinking lights on Ölkelduháls where the path leading down to Drottningarhola by Hveragerdi begins, while another waited at the end of the path.

Such makeshift “lighthouses” are often used when searching for people who are believed to be moving about in the dark.

The man was exhausted and cold and therefore an ambulance was called out to take him to a hospital.

Go to safetravel.is to find information about how to travel safely in Iceland.

ESA