Alpinist fatally injured on the Aletschhorn

On Saturday morning, August 14, 2021, a French alpinist fell while descending from the Aletschhorn over the south face. The rescue workers could only rescue the man dead.

The accident occurred around 11:00 a.m. Two alpinists were not roped down on the descent over the south face of the Aletschhorn (4 m above sea level) in the direction of the Oberaletschhütte.

A few meters below the summit, one of the alpinists fell and fell several hundred meters over a steeply sloping snowfield and rocky terrain. His companion could not make an emergency call in the high mountains, which is why he continued to descend.

At around 16 p.m. he reached the Oberaletschhütte and alerted the rescue workers. From the helicopter, the emergency services were able to locate the injured alpinist on a snow field. He could only be recovered dead.

The victim is a 24-year-old French national residing in Vaud.

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Credits: Cover picture heav84 - CC BY-SA 3.0, text Valais cantonal police

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