Palakkad (Kerala). R Babu, a 23-year-old trekker from Kerala, who was rescued by the Army after he got stuck in a rift in a mountain peak, said he would continue with mountaineering. Babu was recently rescued as part of the army’s breath-taking operation. But Babu said on Friday that mountaineering is his passion.
Babu said that after getting trapped in a steep slope, he was sure that someone would come to save him. Speaking to reporters in Palakkad, Babu said, “I was not scared, the peak was like a small cave. When it’s too hot or too cold outside, I’ve been used to crawling into these crevices and then coming out when someone calls.” This young climber was released from the district hospital on Friday morning. Doctors declared Babu’s condition stable, but advised him to take rest for at least a week.
Asked whether he realized that the campaign to save him was breaking news for the TV channel. To this Babu said that he was not aware of it, but he was sure that someone would come to rescue him. Babu said, “The battery of the mobile phone ran out by evening. But before that I managed to take some selfies and sent it to my friends and told that I am trapped. I also tried to send a message to the firefighters.”
Babu along with two others had decided to climb the mountain peak of Cherad last Monday, but the other two abandoned the attempt midway. Babu kept climbing the top and reached the top, but during this he slipped and got stuck between the rocks. On the initially unsuccessful operation to rescue him by helicopter from the crack, Babu said it was not possible as its wings would hit the rock.
Army rescue teams managed to reach Babu after he was trapped for nearly two days in a rift in a peak in Malampuzha area of Palakkad district in Kerala. They were safely evacuated till Wednesday morning after providing them food and water. He was rescued by an expert mountaineering team from the Madras Regimental Center (MRC). During this, the Army had deployed two teams of mountaineers and experts from Parachute Regimental Centre, Bangalore and Madras Regimental Centre, Wellington.