Help needed in Eastern Tajikistan??
 

Through kayaking contacts, I've iheard there are some kayakers having problems n Tajikistan- I've been asked to contact bike travellers to find out if there's anyone in the area who can pass on info. So far all they know is that the group's SPOT locator distress signal has been activated, here are the rest of the details blow.

FROM Ken Lambla (father) : IMPORTANT Re: kayakers in Tajikistan - Thank you everyone for your support. This has gone viral, so in an effort to coordinate communications with the various teams helping the guys, please do NOT reach out to contacts you may have in Tajikistan, or the region, or in the government - instead, contact Ken Lambla directly at 704-618-2332 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...skype_logo.png704-618-2332 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlighting or kalambla@uncc.edu. Keep the good vibes headed their way!

Any friends have any connections in Tajikistan?


Some friends hit the SOS button on there SPOT Device here;

38.83227 N, 72.860240 E

Message from the family:
...
Kayakers need rescue!!! in Eastern Tajikistan

Cooper's family (at the recommendation of the state department) has requested this to be posted to social media in the hopes that someone may be in the area that can provide any sort of assistance (kayaker, hiker, or anyone that has any pull locally). My understanding is that a helicopter was promised today and it didn't happen. It's also been promised for tomorrow, but at least one family is afraid it won't happen.

"Can you help to send a tweet for any assistance in finding 5 kayakers (Ben Luck, Cooper Lambla, Matt Klema, Nate Klema, Charles King) in Eastern Tajikistan.
Coordinates of emergency beacon are 38.83227 N, 72.860240 E

Please post to social media or share with anyone who may be in the Tajikistan region.

Location
 

Their approximate location is about 50kms to the west of Lake Karakol close to the Kyrgyzstan border.
There's a small settlement on the eastern side of the lake where the road passes through.
They are some distance from what is basically a fairly rough road, so I don't think there will be any bike travellers in the near vicinity, but there are often travellers going along that road. Though this time of year is perhaps a bit late in the season.

Ouside magazine posted an update

Five Kayakers Missing in Tajikistan | News from the Field | OutsideOnline.com

Sending good vibes,
boarder

Hope for a happy ending!Posted on my fb!

Happy Ending
 

I'm pleased to report there is a happy ending, I've just logged on and found the following message (I'm currently in Madagascar with very limited access to Internet) the five kayakers have been rescued and are OK. See below.


DUSHANBE, October 3 (RIA Novosti) – A helicopter search team has found and rescued five Americans that went missing for several days while on a kayaking trip in Tajikistan, a source from the Interior Ministry told RIA Novosti Thursday.
One of the kayakers has a broken leg, but the other four are in satisfactory condition, the source said. The group is traveling to the Central Asian nation’s capital, Dushanbe, by helicopter. They couldn’t get in touch earlier with rescue teams in Dushanbe because of an equipment malfunction, the source said.
The travelers – Ben Luck, Cooper Lambla, Matt Klema, Nate Klema and Charles King – were in the middle of an extended adventure trip through Eurasia and were kayaking down eastern Tajikistan’s Balandkiik River when they set off an emergency beacon on September 30, indicating they were in trouble.
The signal’s GPS coordinates put their location inside Tajikistan’s Pamir National Park, a remote and wild area home to some of Asia’s highest peaks.
A helicopter search-and-rescue team sent out October 1 discovered a broken kayak with a backpack in the region, Outside adventure travel magazine reported on its website. Immediately after the discovery, another emergency signal was set off 6 miles (10 km) away, though rescuers could not continue the search because of imminent nightfall, the site said.
The GPS coordinates indicated that the men were retracing their path, friends and family told the Durango Herald, a newspaper local to the Colorado town where three of the men were reportedly from. As they were all experienced travelers, the slow pace of the group’s progress between the two signals probably indicated someone had been hurt, the families said.
The travelers had already spent two months in Siberia and Kyrgyzstan, relatives told the Durango Herald. They were planning to spend about two weeks in Tajikistan before traveling to Nepal and possibly India and China, not returning to the US before December.

Thanks to those who got in touch with me.