Polar hero Captain Preet stranded in Antarctic as pilots hit with Covid
Captain Preet conquers the South Pole
AN army medic from Derby who made history as the first woman of colour to trek across the Antarctic is currently stranded at the South Pole.
Captain Preet Chandi, 32, made history last week after becoming the first woman of colour to trek solo across the Antarctic.
She travelled 700 miles in 40 days, facing temperatures of -50C on her journey.
Now, after making it safely to the South Pole, Preet is stranded and unable to fly back to Chile, as the pilots meant to fly her back have contracted Covid.
Preet, having travelled to the Union Glacier, will fly to Chile before flying back to the UK next week if all goes to plan.
Hopefully landing back in Chile in the next couple of days, Preet will have an internet connection for the first time in more than a month.
Since she finished her trek, there has been an outpouring of support for the Derby-born Army captain.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson also commended Preet on her journey, saying: “What an extraordinary achievement. Congratulations Captain Preet Chandi.”
As she travelled across the continent, Preet told her followers on social media how she sometimes struggled to keep up her motivation.
Speaking on December 26, she said: “Today felt like one of my hardest days. Not because of the terrain, as the sastrugi (features formed by snow eroded by the wind) are getting smaller and I had good visibility as well. But I haven’t been sleeping a huge amount and I think that’s caught up to me. I was sick a few times today which is actually just annoying because you don’t want to take your facemask off, really not what you want when you’re out here.” But, she persevered and successfully made it to the South Pole after more than a month hiking in the freezing cold weather.
Preet told Forces News how she is hoping to return to the Antarctic and complete a longer journey:
She said: “I’m hoping to come back and do a crossing and a bit of a longer journey.
“I don’t quite know when I’ll come back yet but as soon as I can get the funding and the time away from work, then that’s the next stage.”