Le Figaro Nice
The lifeless body of a 72-year-old hiker was found on Wednesday afternoon in the hills of Saint-Geniez, a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department. According to initial information, the man fell to his death from a cliff that he was trying to cross using mountaineering equipment.
He had been missing since Tuesday evening after a report from his family. At night, teams from the Jausiers high mountain gendarmerie platoon (PGHM) quickly got involved in an attempt to find the septuagenarian. A helicopter and ground resources were deployed, initially in vain.
Difficult conditions
The search resumed the next day with a reinforced system. 20 soldiers from the PGHM were mobilized with those from the “mountain group”. Civilians came to help them comb a wide but winding area. Above all, the weather conditions did not help them since in the morning, snow fell on these massifs.
The hiker's car was spotted in the Saint-Geniez area, which helped direct the search. It was thanks to new technology, placed in the helicopter and which allows phones to be precisely geolocated, that the gendarmes ended up locating the hiker. His body was found near a rocky ridge in the “Pointe de l’cale” sector.
After this death following a fall in a mountainous area, emergency services would like to remind you that practicing this type of activity alone is not recommended, even with knowledge of the chosen sector, as would be the case for this man. They also recommend informing relatives of the route taken as well as the different times of passage.