The body of an injured climber recovered in Argentina in 1981

A body found in an area of ​​glaciers on Cerro Mercedario has been identified by relatives of Marta ‘Patty’ Altamirano

A body found in an area of ​​glaciers on Cerro Mercedario, in northwestern Argentina, has been rescued and recognized by relatives of Marta ‘Patty’ Altamirano, who died in an accident while climbing that peak in 1981. According to local media reports this Saturday , the forensic examination determined that the remains found corresponded to a woman between the ages of 18 and 30. Altamirano was 20 years old at the time of the accident.

The body was found on January 24 by a group of climbers on Cerro Mercedario, in the Argentine province of San Juan (northwest), at about 5,000 meters above sea level, in an area of ​​glaciers. ‘Patty’ Altamirano had an accident when she fell through a crack on the southern slope of this mountain in March 1981, when she was climbing with Corina, one of her sisters, and the Italian Sergio Bossini.

At that moment, Corina and Bossini managed to get to where ‘Patty’ had fallen and verified that she had died, but when they descended and the rescue brigades tried to access the place, a snow storm prevented them from finding the body.

“We recognized many things about her. We are all four of her brothers and we could see that it is her, “Corina told local media after leaving the morgue in the city of San Juan with her three brothers. Corina assured that she was now “peace”, after almost 42 years of searching. The woman assured that she had no doubts that it is the body of her sister, who would be celebrating her birthday this Saturday, although it still remains for the Justice to carry out the DNA comparison of the corpse with the genetic samples taken from her relatives.

Corina pointed out that they want to take the body of “Patty” to the province of Tucumán, so that her parents, already elderly, can say goodbye, and then return to San Juan, to leave Altamirano’s ashes on the Mercedario hill.