BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — A Korean has gone missing as he hiked from Mountain Province to neighboring Ifugao, the Police Regional Office-Cordillera said.
Authorities said Choi Sungkyu arrived in Barlig, Mountain Province the evening of June 7 and checked into an inn. The Mountain Province police said he checked out around 9 a.m. on June 9, informing the owner he was headed to Mount Batad in Banaue, Ifugao.
Half an hour later, a resident of Sitio Chator in Barangay Latang, Barlig saw him hiking towards Barangay Pula, Banaue, the usual route to Mount Batad.
The first indication that something was amiss was around 5:30 p.m. on June 13, when a member of the Barlig police managed to contact Choi. When asked where he was, the Korean replied he was in a place where there are many pine trees and was very weak. He then said he was turning off his mobile phone to conserve the battery.
The morning of June 14, the Korean embassy reported to the Barlig police that Choi was alive and on a big rock in the mountains.
The town’s Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Office, with police and concerned residents, organized a search in Sitios Ammiw and Furud in Barangay Latang, where there are large rock formations, but did not find Choi.
The Barlig police have coordinated with their Banaue counterparts and the search for the Korean is continuing.
