Two days of tragedies in the Alps, 7 deaths in 24 hours

7 deaths in 24 hours on the 4000m peaks of the Alps, a disastrous toll that once again points the finger at the safety conditions of the mountain, on which now – as experts say – it is necessary to plan excursions and climbs as if the summer season is at its peak already in mid-June.

The first was recorded on Friday just below 4,061 meters of the Gran Paradiso summit (Valle d’Aosta), where three Trentino mountaineers died, but then on Saturday two other accidents caused a total of four more deaths.

The accident of June 12th

Last Friday, June 12, three climbers, including two Italians, died presumably falling from the north face of the Gran Paradiso (peak at 4061 metres). We know they left the shelter Federico Chabodin Valsavarenche (at 2750 meters) around 03:00 on June 12th towards the summit.

But at 7.30pm the family members called the 112 emergency call center and a helicopter found the victims thanks to a GPS locator. Before that report, no one raised the alarm, because no one witnessed the accident.

However, since the bodies were found at the base of the wall, it is assumed that one of the members slipped, dragging the others too, but the exact dynamics of the accident are still being investigated by the financiers of the Sagf of Entrève. The exact causes, therefore, are still to be ascertained.

The incidents of June 13th

Unfortunately, yesterday, another four deaths were recorded in the Alps. In fact, in the morning, two mountaineers were hit by a volley of stones while they were climbing up the Mont Maudit (4,465 metres), in the French territory of the massif of Mont Blanc.

And after a few hours, still in that area (Brenva spur, 4,410 metres), another mountaineer also died. This time there was a woman with him who remained unharmed, who was recovered by helicopter on the ridge and who raised the alarm.

But, almost at the same time, on the Matterhorn (4,478 metres) another climber, for reasons still to be clarified, suddenly fell while he was on the Pic Tyndallalong the normal Italian route. Also in this case, his climbing partner, who had remained in the refuge Carrel Hut because he was tired, he witnessed the fall together with a mountain guide, who called for help.

What caused these tragedies

The causes of these tragedies still largely remain to be reconstructed in detail, but something is quite clear, and it points the finger at the global rise in temperatures.

We must take into account that we are a little ahead of the season due to the rather poor snowfall – the director of the Valle d’Aosta mountain rescue reports to Ansa – So, if we want to plan trips, we must calculate that it is as if we were towards mid-late July

May the earth be light on you.

Sources: Ansa / Emergenza24/X