Tourists rescued from car roofs
From the scene last night. Photo/Landsbjörg
Last night, at around 4 am, rescue teams in Borgarfjörður were called out due to reports of tourists in trouble at Kattarhryggur, on their way up to Holtavörðuheiði.
A Landsbjörg Accident Prevention Association statement says that a culvert under the road had become blocked, causing a large section of the road to flood. Tourists in two cars had fallen into the water and managed to get out of the cars and onto their roofs, but they were almost submerged in the water when rescue teams arrived.
From the scene last night. Photo/Landsbjörg
There was so much water on the road that a rescuer in a safety line had to swim to one of the cars, as two tourists were on its roof and had nowhere to go. One tourist had managed to get out of the other car on his own.
The people from the second car were successfully rescued, and by 5:30 am this morning all three had been taken to an ambulance for treatment.
There was so much water on the road that a rescuer had to swim to the cars in a security line. Photo/Landsbjörg
Rescue workers also illuminated the area well to ensure that no one else was there and caught objects that had floated from the cars.
Subsequently, Holtavörðuheiði was closed due to rising water.
The picture is from the photo archives of Morgunblaðið. mbl.is/Björn Jóhann
Holtavörðuheiði is now open
The road through Holtavörðuheiði was reopened after 10 this morning, but it was closed last night due to heavy flooding and several traffic accidents on the heath.
The Icelandic Road Administration's website, umferdin.is , states that the road is closed over Ferjukotssíki in Borgarfjörður where the bridge has been damaged by rising water.
The Icelandic Road Administration draws attention to the fact that after significant temperature changes in recent days, very bad potholes have formed in many places. Travelers are asked to keep this in mind and drive carefully, but repairs are being made as quickly as possible.
