French man falls 180 metres in Pyrénées then manages to walk and seek help

An amateur mountaineer has told how he fell 180 metres from the top of a Pyrénées mountain and escaped with – relatively – minor injuries. The fall itself lasted 47 seconds.

Michel Rognon celebrated his 36th birthday at the beginning of this year, shortly after the fall on December 28.

He noted how lucky he was to be blowing the candles from a cake he was convinced during the fall he would not see.

The accident happened at the end of December on the Aneto mountain, just across the border of France in the Spanish Pyrénées. He was over 2,300m above sea level when he fell.

The peak of the mountain is close to the location of the Cagire mountains in the Haute-Garonne department, where two hikers died at the beginning of the year.

Read more: Call for caution after two hikers die in separate accidents at same Pyrenees spot

Fall after searching for jacket

He was climbing with a friend just prior to the new year after taking a recent interest in mountain climbing. “I caught the bug last March and have climbed 10 mountains since then,” he told local news site Actu. 

He had already climbed the Aneto mountain – the highest peak of the mountain range that divides France and Spain – in the summer, but wanted to do it again at the height of winter. 

Conditions were ideal for a winter climb, with clear skies and temperatures of between 2C and 8C (although they felt close to -15C at high altitudes). 

“There weren't any major difficulties. You just had to follow the route. The technical sections were over [at the place where the accident happened],” Michel said. 

Mr Rognon had a down jacket (doudoune) with him which he had dropped when walking. In chasing after it he slipped on ice and began to fall down the mountainside.

“I should have been careful from start to finish, and not let myself slack off, even on the less technical sections,” he said. 

He had planned for such an event and had practised using an ice pick to catch himself during a fall.

“Just as I was turning, I let go of the ice axe. Then I started to slip and I could feel that it wasn't right. That disaster was on the way and I screamed.” 

47-second fall to the ground 

He then tumbled down the mountain side, dropping 180 metres and falling for 47 seconds before landing. 

His watch recorded speeds of 35 km/h during the fall and he hit his head and numerous body parts on jutting rocks. 

However, he luckily landed on his rucksack, softening the impact.

A Spaniard nearer the foot of the mountain saw him fall and called the emergency services whilst his friend went searching for help. 

There was a safety refuge for climbers around 300 metres from Mr Rognon’s location and despite his injuries, Mr Rognon managed to get to his feet and began walking to the refuge.

“I felt like I was going into hypothermia. I was convinced that by the time [my friend] went for help and the emergency services arrived, I was going to be in the ice for at least an hour. I said to myself, ‘I'm going to die for sure.’” 

“So I got up. My back was killing me, but I walked. I didn't want to die. The only thing that mattered to me was to be alive and to be treated quickly,” he said. 

It took him around 15 minutes to cover the final few metres of the journey before he reached the refuge.

Already walking after accident 

Emergency services airlifted Mr Rognon to a nearby hospital in Val d'Aran, before he was again transferred across the border to a hospital in Montpellier. 

He sustained the following injuries: two transverse fractures on two vertebrae, a contusion of the lungs, four stitches in his arm and an intestinal haemorrhage. 

However he is recovering well. 

“I can feel the pain, but I'm recovering really quickly. I walk in a corset. I've stopped taking medication. If you saw me walking, you'd say I was a completely normal person,” he said. 

Read more: British hiker's disappearance in France highlights importance of safety tech