The climbers Galimberti and Stefanelli were trapped in the Mur de la Cote area, a slope near the summit of Mont Blanc
The four climbers who disappeared on Mont Blanc on Saturday (in addition to the Italian couple, two Koreans were also missing, due to the same weather conditions) have been found dead. Unfortunately, the most likely cause of their death will have been theextreme exhaustion.
As for the Italian couple who had launched the SOS, Andrea Galimberti and his partner, Sara Stefanelli, were recovered lifeless in the early afternoon of today, Tuesday 10 September. The two were at an altitude of 4,500 meters. Their bodies were later transferred to Chamonix.
The rescue operationswhich had been very complicated from the start due to several days of bad weather, had been interrupted. They were waiting for the end of a violent storm. It is assumed that the climbers, divided into two ropes, died already on Saturday, exhausted by the cold and the thick freezing fog.
After a first emergency call by the Italian couple, the rescuers of the Aosta Valley Alpine Rescue had tried to intervene with a team on foot. The risk of losing the rescue team due to the terrible weather conditions had blocked every attempt at rescue and recovery. The search resumed only on Tuesday morning, thanks to an improvement in the weather conditions. In this way, finally, the helicopters were able to fly over the area.
Unfortunately, the rescuers were able to intervene too late, arriving to note the death of the four climbers. They apparently died shortly after contacting the emergency services. According to the Haute-Savoie prefecture, the cause of death was “exhaustion”.
The mountaineers Galimberti and Stefanelli, both Italians, were got trapped in the Mur de la Cote area, an icy slope near the summit of Mont Blanc, on the French side. Rescuers first recovered the bodies of two Korean climbers, and then found the Italian couple nearby. The two had reported being stuck in the fog and in serious danger of frostbite. Unfortunately, no one was able to rescue them.
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