Some time today rescuers are expected to reach 16 members of an expedition who have been trapped since last weekend on a small island in Tibet.

Two rescue teams from different directions joined forces early yesterday en route to the island 5,000 metres above sea level and 600 kilometres away from Ari in northwestern Tibet, sources with the sponsor of the expedition told China Daily.

The rescue teams were less than 90 kilometres from the site where a 16-member scientific expedition has been trapped since Saturday morning.

About 40 rescuers from an army team of nearby Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and an armed police unit from Ari joined forces, said Ding Ming, general manager of Guiyang Laiguishan Wine Co, which sponsored the expedition.

"Conditions on the island are turning more harsh, with the average daily temperature lower than -15 °C," Ding said.

However, members of the expedition remain in high spirits and maintain regular contact via satellite telephone, Ding said.

When the expedition was passing through a river on Saturday, two trucks carrying supplies got stuck in the mud. The members tried but failed to get the trucks out of the river, leader Huang Nengde said via a satellite phone.

The health of the expedition members has been deteriorating as a result of long hours spent outdoors, and six of them have caught cold, added Huang.

(China Daily September 26, 2003)