CHAMONIX, france — A climber trying to scale Mont Blanc might have accidentally caused a 16-inch block of ice to snap off Thursday high in the French Alps, sparking an avalanche that swept nine European climbers to their deaths, authorities said. A dozen climbers were injured, and two were still missing by nightfall.
As snow and ice thundered down the steep slope, several other climbers managed to turn away from the slide in time, said regional authorities in Haute-Savoie.
Two climbers were rescued as emergency crews using dogs and helicopters scoured the high-altitude area. Their hunt, hampered by the possibility of further avalanches, was called off by nighttime.
Three Britons, three Germans, two Spaniards and one Swiss climber were known to have died, the prefecture of the Haute-Savoie region said.
Early-summer storms apparently left behind heavy snow that combined with high winds to form dangerous overhanging conditions on some of the popular climbing routes around Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in western Europe.
The Associated Press
