Dutch arctic researchers' dog rescued; recovery mission difficult

Kimnik, the husky that was traveling with two Dutch arctic explorers in Canada up until they went missing on Thursday, was rescued on Saturday. Cold Facts reports that the dog was still with the explorers' sled, protecting the site from polar bears. Besides being a little hungry, she was doing well. Kimnik will be reunited with her owner, a local wildlife ranger from Resolute.

A helicopter photographically mapped the area in the Canadian Arctic where the explorers, Marc Cornelissen and Philip de Roo, went missing. Marc and Philip are presumed drowned. According to a spokesperson from Cold Facts, these images will be used to determine what is needed to recover their bodies. "It is a difficult terrain. Weather conditions are also poor, there are blizzards raging", spokesperson Marielle Feenstra said. Philip and Marc left from Canada to the North Pole on April 6th to explore the area. On Thursday morning, April 30th, the base camp in the Netherlands received an automated message requesting an urgent pickup. A search was immediately launched to find the two Dutch explorers. The Canadian authorities have since converted the initial search and rescue mission into a recovery operation trying to find their bodies.