Two bodies found after 34 years in retreating Swiss glacier

Saas-Grund: two bodies found after... 34 years Keystone-SDA

The bodies of two Belgian mountaineers, aged 39 and 41 when they went missing in 1992, have been discovered in the melting Trift Glacier in Switzerland.

The remains were discovered on July 26 in the municipality of Saas-Grund, canton Valais. A recovery operation was organised and the bodies were taken to the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the Valais Hospital in Sion for identification.

“A direct comparison of DNA profiles has formally established that the bodies were those of two mountaineers who had been missing in the Weissmies region since 1992,” announced the Valais cantonal police.

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On September 4, 1992, the two men had set out from the Weissmies hut with the aim of climbing the summit of the Weissmies (4,017 metres) and got as far as the Almagell hut. Caught out by appalling weather, they never reached their destination.

In the months that followed, several search operations were carried out, which led to the discovery of a rucksack, but not the hikers.

The Valais cantonal police maintains a list of missing persons detailing reports recorded since 1925. These mainly concern people who have gone missing in the high mountains or in rivers and bodies of water.

“As glaciers retreat, the remains of people who went missing in the mountains several decades ago are sometimes unearthed,” police said.

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Translated from French, reviewed by an English Department journalist.