Three young French climbers missing in Nepal after avalanche
This photo released on November 1, 2021 by Kailash Helicopter Services shows a rescue helicopter flying over the Ama Dablam mountain avalanche site in the Everest region, some 140 km northeast of Kathmandu, where at least three French mountaineers were missing after an avalanche.
the region of Nepal.
AFP - -
Text by: RFI Follow
1 min
There is hardly any hope of finding alive three young French mountaineers engaged in an expedition in Nepal.
They have been missing for a week after an avalanche in the Everest region.
A rescue team was dispatched to the site, the French Federation of Alpine and Mountain Clubs (FFCAM) said in a statement on Sunday (November 1).
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In their twenties, Louis Pachoud, Gabriel Miloche and Thomas Arfi had started the ascent of Mingbo Eiger on October 26.
The three belong to the National Mountaineering Excellence Group, an elite formation of the French Federation of Alpine and Mountain Clubs.
They had arrived at the end of September with other climbers to climb several peaks between 5 and 6,000 meters above sea level, in the Everest region.
The French Federation dispatched a helicopter to support the search carried out by a team of Nepalese rescuers.
The overflights made it possible to locate the traces of the missing climbers up to an altitude of 5,900 meters.
These traces show that the three young men have visibly given up climbing the summit.
They turned around and started a descent by the same ascent route.
Some bags and equipment from the bivouac were found by the Nepalese rescuers.
This Tuesday, the search will continue, but the French Federation of mountaineers admits having almost no hope of finding the three men alive.
The five other members of the group will be repatriated in the coming days, they are severely affected by the disappearance of their comrades, explains an official of the Federation.
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