A tourist has died suddenly while hiking along a mountain trail.
Arlex Galeano Giraldo was a seasoned climber and regularly hiked in the region.
He was walking on one of the highest trails in the area at an altitude of over 11,155 feet (3,400m) above sea level.
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Arlex was with a group of around 10 people when he collapsed on the ground.
He was hiking in the Coffee Axis region of central-western Colombia when he suddenly started to convulse last Thursday (31 Jul).
He reportedly suffered a heart attack before the emergency services could reach the difficult-to-access area.
The tour operator who organised the hike rushed to the scene, but Arlex was no longer showing vital signs by the time help arrived.
David Echeverry, director of the Salento Municipal Risk Management Office, said: “They reported that a person had suffered a seizure.
“Protocols were activated, and the tour operator, as these hikes are tourist services, was instructed to activate their contingency plan and deploy personnel immediately.
“However, upon arriving at the site, they found the person with no vital signs.”
Due to the difficult terrain, firefighters had to wait until the following morning to remove the victim’s body from the mountainous area, as reported by Need To Know.
His body was sent to the Calarcá municipality morgue to undergo an autopsy and establish his exact cause of death.
In his last Instagram post on 1 July, Arlex posted a video of himself hiking in mountain region with the message: “In my defence, I will say that I will always prefer consequences over doubt.”
An investigation into his death is ongoing.
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