At least four mountaineers, two paragliders and a hiker lost their lives in four separate accidents on the mountains of Haute-Savoie during the single day of July 14. The prefect of the department, meanwhile, nine victims. This Thursday, July 17, another mountaineer came to tarnish this sad record by losing his life after a heavy fall from the Ecrins massif, in the Hautes-Alpes.
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Asked about the many accidents on National Day, Stéphane Bozon, commander of the Platoons of Gendarmerie de Haute Montagne in Chamonix, however refuses to speak of "black series". Mortality was however " almost doubled " between May 11 and July 10 on the Mont Blanc massif alone, compared to this same period in 2019. The year 2018 had been particularly deadly in the region, where 36 athletes from all disciplines have died.
For the military, this type of accident is mainly due to a lack of vigilance. According to him, the fatal accidents seen in recent weeks have been " more " caused by " technical faults or poor analysis of racing strategies ". “ With climate change, the rock cracks and you have to be very careful where you put your hands. You also have to approach each race by updating your knowledge of the mountain, which is not the same as it was twenty years ago, ”he advises. The prefect of Haute-Savoie also called for vigilance on the Twitter account of his administration.
"The slightest mistake is fatal"
Among the dramas recorded, the death of two Italian mountaineers, aged 66 and 67 years respectively, on July 14, is particularly eloquent. Originally from Genoa, the two men had undertaken the ascent of Mont Maudit, an alpine summit culminating at 4,500 meters above sea level. The rope approached it from its Italian side via the Kuffner ridge. According to the Chamonix PGHM, in charge of investigating their disappearance, the accident was played downhill while the roped duo was on the French side, on a slope made difficult to read by significant cloudiness.
Read also: Two Italian mountaineers found dead in Mont Blanc
“ There were a lot of clouds over the massif. They unscrewed and fell at least 300 meters, ”said Stéphane Bozon. “ Mont Maudit has become steeper and more frozen due to global warming. The slightest mistake is fatal, "continued the lieutenant-colonel.
