50 tourists assisted in the South last night

A number of cars were left behind last night by …

A number of cars were left behind last night by Pétursey. Photo/ICE-SAR Landsbjörg

There was a significant problem for tourists due to the weather in South Iceland last night, but operations lasted until five o’clock last night.

According to Jón Þór Víglundsson, information officer of the ICE-SAR Landsbjörg, there were a lot of calls to Pétursey below Mýrdalsjökull glacier, with rescue parties assisting around 40-50 people in that region.

He says all of the calls have been made by people in single cars who had problems with precipitation and driving on the road. There are yellow warnings in South Iceland due to the east wind and snow.

About ten cars were weather-clogged and Víglundsson says about 30 people have been evacuated by rescue services in Vík, where a mass assistance center was opened.

There were no accidents and all the tourists are well, according to Víglundsson. A number of cars were left behind at Pétursey, however, and this morning’s task has been to get people back to their cars and get them on their way.

Weather

Clear sky

Today

-2 °C

Partly cloudy

Later today

4 °C

Cloudy

Tomorrow

1 °C