Rescuers found the body Sunday of a third Russian who disappeared while on a canoe trip with a group of six in China's remote northwest, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, according to AP. The body was located just after 11 a.m. (0300 GMT) on a bank of the upper reaches of the Yurungkax river. Rescuers had flown it by helicopter to the city of Hotan, the report said. On Saturday, Xinhua said the bodies of two Russians had been discovered under a canoe along a riverbank. None of those so far found have been identified, and the whereabouts of the other three missing remain unknown. Officials are investigating possible causes of death, and trying to identify the bodies, the agency said. Xinhua said the body was reportedly found wearing sunglasses and a helmet, and was barefoot. A bag was found nearby, but there was no sign of food or drinking water. The Russians set out in three canoes on Aug. 21 for a 12-day trip paddling down the Yurungkax in the mountains of China's Xinjiang region. They failed to meet up with a Chinese interpreter as scheduled on Sept. 2, sparking a massive joint Chinese-Russian rescue effort. Rescuers earlier reported finding red canoes, clothing and iron bars used to fix canoes at two sites. Xinhua reported Sunday that two Chinese helicopters had been added to the one already searching by air, while about 1,700 soldiers, policemen and local herders were combing the region on the ground. Russia had earlier sent an Il-76 cargo plane with a 40-member search and rescue crew and equipment including a light helicopter and off-road vehicle. However, Xinhua said the air search was temporarily halted shortly after 4:00 p.m. (0800 GMT) due to a sandstorm. Xinhua earlier identified the missing men as Vladimir Smetannikov, Sergey Chernik, Andrey Pautov, Dmitry Tishchenko, Ivan Chernik and Alexander Zverev. It said they ranged in age from 25 to 47. The Yurungkax, also spelled as Yurungkash and known in Chinese as the «Baiyu» or «White Jade,» originates high in the mountains of Kashmir before flowing north into the Taklamakan desert. The river's high mountain headwaters flow through deep, isolated gorges and frequently run too shallow in places for canoes to pass. Xinhua earlier quoted a local resident as saying the Russians might have become stranded and been dragging their canoes to a spot where they could take to the water again.
