Following the tragedy on the Argentiere Glacier of Mont Blanc, western Europe’s highest summit, rescuers were unable to revive the woman. The Chamonix coroner has begun an investigation into the death and requested an autopsy.
A British woman perished in the French Alps after being caught in an avalanche.
The 45-year-old was hiking with two others on the Argentiere Glacier of Mont Blanc on Saturday when the disaster occurred.
A guide alerted a professional high mountain search and rescue unit in Chamonix about the event at approximately 5:00 p.m., and the unit dispatched rescue workers and a doctor via helicopter, according to the French police.
Colonel Bertrand Host from the mountain rescue squad stated that despite their attempts, the woman could not be saved.
“When we arrived, we had to evacuate this person from the valley. Since she was in a dire state,” he said. She was seized by rescuers and two dogs, but we were unable to resuscitate her.
The Chamonix coroner has begun an investigation into the woman’s death and requested an autopsy.
Colonel Host stated that deaths on the Mont Blanc mountain are not uncommon, with approximately 80 people dying a year.
The local public prosecutor’s office stated that the woman and her partner were climbing the Col du Tour Noir with a high mountain guide when the avalanche occurred.
The office verified that a three-on-a-scale-of-five avalanche warning risk was in effect on Saturday.
A Foreign Office official stated, “We are assisting the family of a British woman who passed away in France.”
Mont Blanc is the highest peak in western Europe at 4,810m (15,781ft) and attracts approximately 20,000 skiers and hikers annually.
