A July 4th hike in the Swiss Alps near the Italian border turned into a fight for life for one hiker after he lost his footing and plunged into an icy crevasse that trapped him 8 metres deep below the glacial surface.

The hiker was not alone. He'd held onto his amateur radio HT and used it to call for help. According to various media accounts, although his signal was picked up nearby, that radio operator could not narrow down the hiker's location. He reached out to emergency services instead.

The hiker was also not alone because he had a companion: his small dog, believed to be a Papillon [Pap-EE-Yon]. The little dog remained steadfast in the snow, sitting atop of the glacial hole that held the man captive. As it turns out, the shivering, barking dog is what got the helicopter rescue crew's attention first before they even saw the crevasse.

The Air Zermatt rescue team was able to lift the hiker and his dog to safety and flew them to a local hospital. Air Zermatt released a statement later calling the effort an "extraordinary" rescue mission. Neither the hiker's name nor the dog's name were made public.

Hams know that a lifesaving HT is always a plus for such hikes -- but for extra assurance, perhaps the next essential in the amateur radio "go kit" out to be something called an "LD" -- which in this case, stands for "Loyal Dog."