Ten days have now passed since Gordon Simm, 63, was reported missing by his wife Wendy, after heading out from his hotel in Nerja to hike up the Rio Chillar. Despite no trace having been found so far the Guardia Civil are continuing with their rescue efforts in the Sierra Almijara Natural Park and are now searching caves and chasms, in case the missing hiker has fallen and is not visible from the air. In addition to the search teams on the ground the Guardia Civil have been searching using a helicopter fitted with thermal imaging equipment.
Guardia Civil technicians have also been trying to trace the signal from Gordon Simm’s mobile phone without success. Due to the rugged nature of the terrain, mobile phone coverage is patchy in the Rio Chillar area, making mobiles largely unusable there.
Gordon Simm, from Kirkbymoorside in North Yorkshire is an experienced hiker and has co-authored books on walking Hadrian’s Wall and the Cleveland Way.
Last summer the Dutch tourist Mary-Anne Goossens went missing for more than two weeks in the Rio Chillar, before being found alive and well, trapped in a pool between two waterfalls, in an inaccessible area near to the source of the river. After a rescue operation lasting several hours, the 48 year old woman was freed by the Guardia Civil Mountain Rescue team, who had to use ropes to descend into the pool, and she was transferred to Velez Malaga Hospital by helicopter. Other than scratches and having lost 10kg in weight, she was otherwise unharmed by the ordeal. She survived by drinking the river water and eating plants.
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