(ANSA) - QUITO, OCTOBER 24 - The new toll of the avalanche that fell yesterday on a snow-capped volcano in Ecuador, the highest peak in the country, is three dead and three missing. The rescuers, as we learned, stopped their searches early in the night; they will resume at dawn.
The avalanche hit a group of 16 climbers as they stood at an altitude of 6,100 meters on the dormant volcano Chimborazo. "There are three mountaineers missing, three dead, three wounded and seven rescued", the Quito fire vigilantes specified in a note. A previous report from the security service spoke of 4 dead climbers and one wounded.
Authorities did not identify the climbers or their nationalities, but the Quito newspaper El Comercio reported that they were all Ecuadorians.
The avalanche was caused by "weather conditions" and was not caused by any volcanic activity, according to firefighters.
Rescuers and police and military personnel specializing in high-altitude operations have established a command center in Chimborazo to coordinate search and rescue operations.
The volcano, over 6,200 meters high, is covered with snow and glaciers all year round and is located about 130 kilometers south of Quito. Ecuador's Ministry of the Environment has temporarily closed the surrounding nature reserve for tourists.
The summit of Chimborazo is the furthest point from the center of the Earth, from which it is 6.38 million meters.
The rescuers, it was finally learned, interrupted the search for any survivors or victims at the beginning of the night, and until dawn today.
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