THE BODIES of six mountain climbers have been discovered by a walker high in the French Alps.
The bodies were found at an altitude of 2,700 metres at a site known as the Neige Cordier peak, 5km from the village of Villar d’Arene in the Hautes-Alpes region.
The climbers are believed to have died in an accident or avalanche on Saturday morning, 24 hours before their bodies were found.
The local mayor, Xavier Cret, who works as a mountain guide, said the victims were in two groups attached by climbing ropes. Their bodies were flown to the village by helicopter and a makeshift morgue was set up.
“The victims were in two roped groups. We guess there was a sudden flow of snow and stones,” Mr Cret said.
A spokesman for the mountain rescue service that recovered the bodies said “all hypotheses are possible”.
“They could have been caught up when a snow bridge collapsed, or in a fall or an avalanche,” he said.
The climbers have not been identified. – (Guardian service)