Hikers who got lost in the Balkan Mountains near Kotel were found in a rescue operation. 

The incident was reported to the emergency number 112 at 19:49 yesterday. The tourists said they did not know their exact location and had only one mobile phone with a low battery. Thanks to the Advanced Mobile Localisation (AML) implemented in the national emergency number 112, the lost hikers were located. 

The organised search, which included mountain rescue and a fire brigade team, was successfully completed at around 00.30. The tourists were found in good health and rescued from the mountain. 

The AML service, which was launched in the country in February 2022, is part of the new smartphone operating systems and automatically activates the caller's location and sends them to 112 in the event of an incident. The information will only be available to emergency operators subject to the requirements of the e-Privacy Directive and GDPR, the Home Office said.