Mont Blanc rescue comes at a price
"We're exhausted, help us." was the call for rescue from two Spanish climbers stranded on the Mont Blanc that ended costing them 7,000 Euros.
Perched on the Peuterey crest on the route to the Mont Blanc summit, the climbers gave the alert to the Aosta Valley rescue services on Sunday.
However bad weather meant the initial helicopter rescue could not locate the climbers.
Meanwhile the cold, hunger and thrist forced the climbers to move on, who managing to climb to the summit of Mont Blanc. They had decided reaching the summit would make for an easier rescue.
However this proved to be a costly mistake for the Spanish pair as the Italian rescue services continued their search around the Peuterey crest.
The helicopter fortunately made a pass over the top of Mont Blanc towards the Gouter refuge, which enabled them to spot the two climbers who had by now slowly started their descent down the French side of the mountain.
They were finally rescued and transported to the Aosta hospital in Italy.
The pair of climbers from Barcelona will go home with hefty bill and an unforgettable memory of their ascent.
The total bill of 7,000 € is far from the actual cost of the rescue which involved 15 helicopter flights, however the local law restricts the fee's passed on to the victim to 3,500 Euros per person. In many ways these two climbers were very lucky.
Source: 24Heures
