Thermal drone and radio direction-finding for hikers

Slovakia’s mountain rescue service (HZS) reports that on the night of 14 October 2026 Prešov police asked for help finding a missing 26-year-old man between the villages of Hranovnica and Spišský Štiavnik, south of the High Tatras.

Two rescuers from the avalanche prevention and training centre and one from the High Tatras HZS station took part. Overnight they swept the assigned area with thermal-imaging drones and a special device for locating mobile phones.

The search ended in the early morning: police found the man alive and well near Spišský Štiavnik.