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Canyoning company scraps plan to resume excursions at accident site

The Swiss company that organized a canyoning trip last summer during which 21 people died has called off plans to resume excursions in the gorge where the accident took place.

The Swiss company that organized a canyoning trip last summer during which 21 people died has called off plans to resume excursions in the gorge where the accident took place. Adventure World said the concerned reactions of the victims’ relatives and of the Australian government had led to their change of plan.

The company, based in Interlaken, had said earlier this month that it would start taking canyoners back to the Saxeten gorge from the beginning of May, noting that a new early warning and alarm system was being developed to reduce any risks from the sport.

Eighteen tourists — most of them Australian — and three guides died in the July 1999 accident, which was caused by a flash flood. The Swiss authorities are still investigating 11 people involved with the organization of the trip on suspicion of negligent homicide.

Adventure World said on Friday that it understood “the concern of the relatives and the authorities” and added that it wanted to give them more precise information about the new security measures being developed. No new date has been given for the resumption of the trips.

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