When it comes to mountain rescue operations, Saint Bernards clearly have some serious competition: a Chihuahua was declared a hero after helping to rescue a man who had fallen into a crevasse in Switzerland.

This “extraordinary” rescue took place on Friday, July 4, on the Fee Glacier above Saas-Fee, in the southern Swiss Alps, according to the Air Zermatt rescue service.

The man was walking on the glacier with his companion in the early afternoon when he suddenly fell into an 8-meter crevasse, leaving his small dog alone on the edge. He was carrying an amateur radio station and managed to send a distress signal, but rescuers were unable to locate the exact site of the accident for a long time.

“The search for the site of the collapse proved very difficult. The surface of the glacier was wide and the opening was barely visible,” explained Air Zermatt, the regional rescue service in the canton of Valais.

Then one of the rescuers noticed a slight movement on a rock:

“Thanks to the dog's behavior, the team was able to pinpoint the exact location of the accident,” Air Zermatt reported. Rescuers rappelled down to the victim and managed to pull him out. | BGNES