NANTOU, Taiwan (TVBS News) — Search and rescue teams recovered the bodies of four climbers in a single day across Taiwan's mountainous Nantou County, marking a devastating toll in what officials described as deceptively dangerous conditions. The National Park Service (國家公園署) issued an urgent advisory Monday (March 24) recommending all hikers postpone planned ascents as melting snow has created treacherous ice sheets across many of Taiwan's popular climbing routes, transforming familiar trails into lethal terrain.
The first tragedy involved two young colleagues — 26-year-old Lu and 25-year-old Lin — whose bodies were discovered Sunday on Jade Mountain (玉山), Taiwan's highest peak. The pair had set out on what was planned as a routine weekend expedition last Friday with intentions to return the following day. Concern mounted when their friend Peng discovered fragments of their climbing equipment scattered near a critical trail junction on Saturday, prompting an immediate missing persons report. Rescue teams located and confirmed their deaths at 11 a.m. Sunday after an intensive search operation.
Recovery efforts were complicated by severe weather conditions that hampered aerial operations. The Airborne Service Corps (空中勤務總隊) helicopter initially attempted retrieval but was forced to abort due to dangerous wind patterns and turbulent air currents in the mountain passes. A search team member noted that the mountain area resembled a large skating rink, emphasizing the perilous conditions. Ground teams ultimately secured the bodies using specialized rope techniques before a successful airlift was completed by 12:15 p.m., following hours of painstaking work in the hazardous environment.
In a separate but equally tragic incident unfolding simultaneously, search teams discovered the bodies of 30-year-old Chen and 49-year-old Tseng in the popular Mount Hehuan (合歡山) region. The Nantou County Fire Bureau (南投縣消防局) had initiated search operations last Friday following reports that the hikers had failed to return from their expedition. After days of searching across difficult terrain, rescue personnel located Chen's body near a debris dam while Tseng was found in a deep ravine several hundred meters away, both having succumbed to falls on ice-covered slopes.