Couple rescued after 44 hours trapped in sub‑zero Patagonian snowstorm

José Guillermo Bilbao and Noelia Gissella Siares were stranded for 44 hours inside their truck on Route Provincial 43 near Cerro Piedra in Santa Cruz, Argentina. A fierce snowstorm blocked the road, and temperatures fell to –22 °C. The couple kept the engine running in short bursts to preserve heat and fuel.

A coordinated rescue effort by Vialidad Provincial, the National Gendarmerie, the Special Rescue Operations Group (GOER) and Santa Cruz police located the vehicle near 4:30 a.m. on Monday and extricated the couple. A second young couple, also caught in the same snowfield, was initially mistaken for the trapped pair, delaying the operation. Both rescued individuals were found in good health and required no urgent medical treatment.