The lifeless bodies of the two Italian mountaineers missing on Mont Blanc have been found. They were located and recovered by the Peloton d'haute montagne of Chamonix after yet another helicopter overflight.
There had been no news of Andrea Galimberti, 53, from Como, and Sara Stefanelli, 41, from Genoa, since last Saturday. The last GPS signal from their phone placed them at 4,500 meters above sea level, on the "Mur de la cote", a steep icy slope that leads to the summit. It was there that the bodies were spotted by the gendarmerie in the early afternoon.
It is likely that they died of exposure, and the death may have already occurred last Saturday, in the midst of the storm. The bodies were taken to Chamonix. According to French media, the bodies of two South Korean mountaineers were also recovered: they too had been missing on the mountain since last Saturday, after being surprised by bad weather at high altitude. Taking advantage of the clear sky, the first overflights took place at dawn: first the French and then the Italians. The outcome was negative.
At high altitude, at least 50 centimeters of fresh snow have accumulated in the last few days, the tracks of crampons on the glacier have been buried. "We had thought of leaving a team on foot on the summit - explains Paolo Comune, head of the Aosta Valley Alpine Rescue - with two people who could search for the missing. But the conditions up there are too dangerous, both because of the wind that makes the operation difficult and because of the unstable snow that can cause avalanches".
The French gendarmes made further attempts as soon as the weather cleared, until the decisive one. Almost 70 hours had passed since the last desperate call from the two climbers, stuck in the middle of the storm (temperatures up to -15 degrees and winds up to 150 kilometers per hour), who were asking for help from an altitude of 4,600. "We can't see anything, come and get us, we risk freezing to death," was the dramatic message to the rescuers. However, the family believed in a miracle, trusting in the experience of the two climbers: in particular, Andrea Galimberti had numerous climbs in the Alps behind him.
