Chihuahua hailed as hero in ‘extraordinary’ Swiss Alps’ glacier rescue
A man who fell 26 feet into a crevasse was found by rescuers because of his loyal Chihuahua, who stayed faithfully at the edge of the collapse site
When it comes to mountain rescues, St. Bernard’s may have met their match, with a Chihuahua being hailed as a hero for helping save a man who fell into a glacier crevasse in Switzerland.
The “extraordinary” rescue took place last Friday on the Fee Glacier above Saas-Fee in the southern Swiss Alps, the Air Zermatt rescue service said in a statement over the weekend.
A man had been hiking on the glacier with his Chihuahua early on Friday afternoon when he suddenly plunged into an eight-metre (26-foot) deep crevasse, leaving the tiny dog alone on the edge.
The man was carrying an amateur walkie-talkie and managed to call for help, but rescuers struggled for a long time to locate him.
“On site, the search for the collapse site proved difficult. The glacier surface was wide, and the hole was barely visible,” Air Zermatt, a regional rescue service in Wallis canton, said.
But then one of the rescuers spotted a small movement on a rock: the Chihuahua had not budged from the edge of the crevasse.