Search Underway for Missing Environmental Journalist in Norway’s Folgefonna Wilderness

By Admin

Rescue efforts have resumed in Norway for Alec Luhn, an award-winning environmental journalist who disappeared during a solo hike in the remote Folgefonna National Park, amid deteriorating weather conditions.

Luhn, 38, a U.S.-born reporter with past contributions to The New York Times, The Atlantic, and The Guardian as a Russia correspondent between 2013 and 2017, was reported missing on Monday after failing to board a scheduled flight from Bergen.

According to Norwegian broadcaster NRK, Luhn was vacationing with his family and embarked alone on a hiking trip on July 31, departing from the Ullensvang outdoor center located at the northern edge of the 550-square-kilometre park in western Norway.

Local authorities said a search was launched involving Red Cross volunteers, sniffer dogs, drones, and police personnel. However, operations had to be halted late Monday night due to worsening weather.

Tatjana Knappen, operations manager with the Vestland police, said, “Weather conditions started to get really bad around midnight,” forcing the recall of a rescue helicopter. “It was not reasonable to continue the search up in the mountains.”

Despite forecasts predicting more strong gales on Tuesday, Knappen expressed hope that a weather window would allow for renewed helicopter surveillance and enable search teams to comb the vast, rugged terrain.

Police noted that Luhn is a fit and well-prepared mountain hiker with extensive experience.

His wife, Veronika Silchenko, a fellow journalist and Emmy Award winner, took to social media on Tuesday to appeal for any information from people who may have seen him.

Luhn, who holds multiple journalism honors and two Emmy nominations, has been based in Moscow, Istanbul, and now the UK. He currently works as a fellow with the Pulitzer Center’s Ocean Reporting Network, focusing on climate journalism.

Folgefonna, Norway’s third-largest glacier, is located on a dramatic peninsula known for its fjords, mountains, lakes, rivers, and icefalls. While the area has long attracted adventurers, parts of the park are desolate and hazardous—especially in adverse weather.