Four foreign climbers found dead near the peak of Mont Blanc
The Korean and Italian mountain climbers went missing this weekend. Local mayor said language issues may have influenced their choice not to take a guide
Several deaths have occurred this summer near the mountain peak
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The bodies of four mountain climbers who went missing on Saturday (September 7) near the peak of Mont Blanc have been recovered.
The climbers – two Italians, and two Koreans – died of exhaustion, said the Haute-Savoie prefecture.
Poor weather from Saturday’s storms trapped them at a height of 4,000 metres on the mountain, and they were unable to descend.
The mayor of the local area confirmed that the men chose not to take a guide with them after being given the option to do so.
He said a language barrier during the presentation of the information about the guide may have affected their choice.
It is the latest in a string of deaths on the mountain in recent months.
Read more: One death and four injured in avalanche at Mont Blanc
Six people trapped on mountain peak
Three different parties of roped climbers went missing on Saturday afternoon near the peak of the mountain.
One of these groups, consisting of two Koreans, was rescued on Sunday, but the remaining four could not be found.
Various search operations took place, including on Tuesday, however poor weather repeatedly prevented planes from being able to scour the area.
A combined effort from a new search plane launched from Annecy, and a group of Italian rescuers on foot found the two Koreans, quickly followed by the Italians in the immediate vicinity, on Tuesday afternoon, said the prefecture.
They were found around 100m - 200m from the summit of the mountain.
Temperatures may have reached as cold as -40C during the peak of the bad weather, with rain, snow, and bitter winds swirling around the mountain peak.
Guides are not compulsory to climb mountain peak
Using a guide when climbing Mont Blanc is “always recommended… but not compulsory,” said Eric Fournier, mayor of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc to FranceInfo.
“It's perfectly possible for experienced mountaineers to take on this climb, but the prerequisite is the quality of the information you get at the outset, which enables you to [choose],” he added.
“There may also be a language barrier [when explaining information about the guide]. We need to re-examine and pursue our work in this direction, on the quality of the information we can provide. It's the only way to avoid tragedies of this kind,” he said.
Read more: Mont Blanc tunnel to close for three months
