Rescuers were able to locate two survivors of a recent deadly disaster on the K2 mountain thanks to a satellite phone and the efforts of a Peachtree City company.

XSAT employees in Dubai were able to retrieve GPS location data from survivor Wilco Van Rooijen's transmission, and those coordinates sparked the successful resuce of Rooijen and another survivor, the company said in a news release this afternoon.

Rooijen was part of a team of 22 explorers attempting to reach the summit when an ice wall collapsed on them, destroying ropes and lines needed for a safe descent.

Rooijen called his brother using a Thuraya Satellite Phone, and his brother contacted Tom Sjogren of the mountaineering web site ExplorersWeb. Sjogren in turn contacted XSAT USA President Jan Rademaker Friday, Aug. 1 at 10:30 p.m. requesting the data.

The data was used for the rescue, and the two climbers were taken to a Pakastani hospital for frostbite treatment. The disaster claimed the lives of 11 others on the expedition.

K2, located on the border of Pakistan and China, is the second-highest mountain in the world, and due to its difficult conditions one in every four people dies trying to make the ascent.

XSAT USA is based out of Peachtree City and affiliated with XSAT FZE in Dubai. XSAT USA has offices in Miami, Virginia, and Limassol (Republic of Cyprus). It manages sales in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, CIS and the Americas. XSAT's mission is to provide affordable telecommunication services to companies, and individuals located and operating in remote areas.

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