What is known about the disappearance of a group of tourists on snowmobiles in the Perm region

A large—scale search continues in the Urals for 13 tourists who disappeared after climbing the highest peak of the Middle Urals, Mount Oslyanka in the Perm Region. The group from the Sverdlovsk region did not get in touch on the evening of December 13, and since then its location has been unknown. Rescuers, volunteers and dozens of pieces of equipment, including a helicopter, are involved in the operation. For more information, see the Izvestia article.

Chronology of events

The incident occurred on Saturday, December 13, 2025. According to the investigation, a group of fifteen men on twelve snowmobiles left the village of Srednyaya Usva in the Mining district and headed for Mount Oslyanka, located in the Kizelovsky district. The route has not been agreed with the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

By the evening of the same day, at about 18:00, only two participants returned to the gathering point, the Oslyanka House base in Srednyaya Usva. They reported that they had separated from the main group earlier due to personal matters. The fate of the remaining thirteen people remains unknown.

According to media reports, the last contact with the missing was at about 16:00 on December 13. One of the tourists managed to call his wife and informed her that the group had reached the top and was starting their descent. After that, the connection was interrupted. The search for the missing began on Sunday, December 14, after relatives contacted them.

Search and rescue operation

Emergency Situations Ministry rescuers are combing the area using quadrocopters, thermal imagers and snowmobiles. Almost fifty people and thirty-five pieces of equipment, including an Mi-8 helicopter, are involved in the search.

More than twenty volunteers on snowmobiles joined the operation, including the Lisa Alert search and rescue team, which deployed a mobile headquarters in Central Usva. Investigators and police are also working at the site, who are conducting an inspection of the area and checking possible routes for the group.

The Ministry of Tourism of the Perm Region announced the continuation of the search for missing tourists

Searches are also conducted at night, however, as rescuers note, they are seriously hampered by weather conditions. In particular, Denis Govorov, deputy head of the main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Perm Region, said that the search engines reached the top of Oslyanka, but due to strong winds and poor visibility, they did not find anything.

The main versions of what happened

According to the main working version, a group of tourists could have split up and strayed from the route in conditions of sharply deteriorating weather: on the day of the disappearance, visibility was extremely low at the foot of the mountain, and by Monday, snow began to fall in the area.

According to eyewitnesses, the group could have climbed to the top along an already paved path in the Kurumnaya River area — there is reason to believe that they really were on the mountain.

Rescuers hope that the tourists, being well equipped, could set up a temporary camp at the foot of the mountain. The criminal version is not being considered yet, as no obvious signs of a crime have been found by law enforcement agencies.

The investigative department for the city of Gornozavodsk of the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Perm Territory organized a procedural check on the disappearance of a group of tourists, and a criminal case was opened.

The identities of the missing

All the missing are men between the ages of 27 and 43, residents of Yekaterinburg and Verkhnyaya Pyshma, Sverdlovsk region. The group included both experienced tourists and instructors, as well as amateurs. The group was headed by Anton Korenevsky from Yekaterinburg.

Currently, 13 people are missing. A preliminary list appeared at Izvestia's disposal on December 14. It includes: Artur K., born in 1988, Anton K., born in 1985, Rustam Ya., born in 1982, Sergey K., born in 1982, Leonid Z., born in 1982, Mikhail N., born in 1984, Igor R., born in 1982, Alexander K., born in 1988, Maxim S., born in 1984, Alexander T., born in 1988, Alexander D., born in 1981, Rustam S., born in 1988, and Andrei M., born in 1972

According to media reports, the missing were friends who had gathered for a snowmobile ride together.

The UK has opened a criminal case into the disappearance of tourists in the Perm Region.

What is the danger of Mount Oslyanka?

Mount Oslyanka is the highest peak in the Middle Urals (1119 m high). It is located 50 km from the city of Kizela and about 300 km from Perm. The area is characterized by difficult terrain, dense forests, stone placers (kurums) and sudden temperature fluctuations.

In winter, snowstorms are frequent here and there is a danger of avalanches. It was in the area of the stone placers — Kurum — that tourists were seen on the day of the disappearance. Tourism industry experts and rescuers consider this area difficult for winter hikes, even for trained groups.

The disappearance of the group at Oslyanka has once again raised the issue of the safety of winter tourism and the need for mandatory registration of routes in difficult natural conditions. Earlier, the Ministry of Emergency Situations has repeatedly called on fans of extreme recreation to inform about their plans and have serviceable means of communication with them, including satellite phones or beacons, as well as to adequately assess their strength and weather conditions.

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