The PGHM received a call on Saturday morning, alerting them to the fact that a group of Hungarians were about to attempt to summit Mont Blanc with two 9 year old children.
The parents, their two young twins and a friend, were about to set off from the Gouter Refuge (3835m), when someone alerted the mountain rescue office.
Le Messager reports that another mountaineer who had also been staying in the refuge, said that he saw the children "paralysed, crying and no longer able to move under the weight of their packs."
The mother and children were taken back down to Chamonix by helicopter, but not before the captain of the PGHM apparently made a point of speaking to the parents in person. The father and friend apparently continued their summit attempt.
There is no age limit imposed on anyone wanting to climb Mont Blanc, however there are significant risks of getting acute altitude sickness, which could lead to further, more serious health risks.
