Rescue teams find bodies of two missing hikers

ISTANBUL

As the search and rescue efforts continue for a 17th day for two Turkish hikers who went missing in western Turkey, the Gendarmerie Search and Rescue (JAK) teams on Dec. 18 found two male bodies thought to be the missing hikers.

On Dec. 1, Efe Sarp and Mert Alpaslan went missing in the evening due to heavy fog near Mt. Uludağ peak in Bursa province.  

Efe Sarp was identified by an ID card in his pocket when rescue teams retrieved his body.

Another body, believed to be of Mert Alpaslan, was located by rescue teams in the region. The identity of the body is expected to be announced following an autopsy.

Search efforts were initiated when the families of the hikers contacted the gendarmerie after losing contact with their sons.

On Dec. 8 the search and rescue teams discovered that a coat and a hat found in a stream bed belonged to Efe Sarp.

Within the scope of the work carried out teams in the Küreklidere region, two batons were found belonged to Sarp and Alpaslan.