Skip to main content
SeeChamonix

3 Mountaineers dead on Mont Blanc route

Large serac falls took the lives of 3 climbers yesterday

featured in News & reviews Author Ellie Mahoney, Chamonix Editor Updated

Three mountaineers sadly lost their lives yesterday on the 3 Monts route leading to the summit of Mont Blanc. 

A German guide and his two female clients were swept to their deaths when large seracs [blocks of ice] collapsed around them. Some of the seracs were said to have been 3-4 metres wide. 

After spending the night in the Cosmiques refuge the group set off at around 1am to summit and the accident happened at around 5am on Mont Maudit at an altitude of 4,465 metres. 

The bodies of the two female climbers were recovered yesterday evening and their guide this morning. Rescue teams reported that they we buried by between 50cm and 1 metre of debris. 

Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the three climbers.