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MONT BLANC

Two climbers killed in Mont Blanc range rockslide

Two mountaineers -- one French and the other Dutch -- died in a rockslide while climbing the Aiguille du Tour on the Swiss side of the Mont-Blanc range, police said on Tuesday.

Published: 2 August 2023 08:21 CEST
Two climbers killed in Mont Blanc range rockslide
The Aiguille du Midi and Mont Blanc Massif during the sunset, in Chamonix, France (Photo by MARCO BERTORELLO / AFP)

 A 22-year-old climber, also from the Netherlands, was injured in Monday’s accident, regional police of the canton of Valais said.

The 26-year-old Frenchman and the Dutch climber, who was 10 years older, were climbing in two separate rope groups when a  slab of rock broke off near the summit overlooking the Trient glacier.

It hit a rope, killing one of the climbers attached while injuring another.

The rock then hit a second rope killing a second mountaineer, police said.

The 3,540-metre Aiguille du Tour, on the border with France, has two summits of equal height at a distance of around 130 metres.

Crossing the south and north of the mountain’s summits is a popular high-altitude feat for climbers.

READ MORE: Why is climbing Mont Blanc so dangerous?

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WEATHER

Four killed in avalanche in France’s Auvergne region

Four people were killed on Sunday in an avalanche in the mountainous Auvergne region of central France, local authorities said.

Published: 25 February 2024 18:45 CET
Four killed in avalanche in France's Auvergne region

The avalanche took place at 1,600 metres (5,250 feet) of altitude above the village of Mont-Dore in an area known as the Val d’Enfer, the prefecture of the Puy-de-Dome department said in a statement.

Three other people were also slightly injured after a major search operation mobilising some 50 people, it added.

Local daily La Montagne said that those hit by the avalanche were ski mountaineers from a nearby club who had gone on an off-piste route with a guide.

The mountains in the Auvergne, many of which are of volcanic origin, are less high than those in the Alps or Pyrenees further south but can be highly remote with extensive snow cover.

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