2 injured Europeans rescued from New Zealand after alerts received in Britain, U.S.

Two injured Europeans have been rescued from remote parts of New Zealand thanks to emergency beacons that alerted authorities on the other side of the world.

In the first incident, a 64-year-old English solo mountaineer was rescued from the western slopes of Mount Mabel, in the South Island, late on Sunday after slipping on snow and injuring a leg on rocks.

The man activated his Britain-registered personal locator beacon at around and the British Coastguard, which handles beacon registration in Britain, notified the Rescue Coordination Center New Zealand (RCCNZ).

RCCNZ search and rescue mission coordinator Dave Wilson said Monday that a rescue helicopter equipped with night vision equipment was directed to the scene and the injured man was found in a very steep gully and flown to hospital.

"His leg injury is not thought to be serious but he was not able to walk without assistance," Wilson said in a statement.

In the second rescue, a 32-year-old German tramper was picked up by a rescue helicopter after injuring his ankle while hiking inland from the North Island's East Cape on Monday.

The man had activated a spot tracking beacon, with the signal picked up by a coordination center in the United States, and the position passed on to the RCCNZ.

RCCNZ search and rescue mission controller Tracy Brickles said in a statement that the man had suffered a what appeared to be an ankle sprain and was unable to continue.

"The whole operation went smoothly and was completed within about three hours," said Brickles. Endit