Group fall from a snow cornice on Castore (Monte Rosa): one climber dead, three others injured

It was a group fall from a snow cornice, and not an avalanche, that caused the death of a mountaineer and the injury of three others this afternoon on Castore, in the Monte Rosa massif. This was confirmed by the Aosta Valley Alpine Rescue Service (SAV).
The alarm to the rescuers had come as an accident caused by an avalanche. Only once they arrived on site were they able to better ascertain the dynamics of the incident. Descending from the summit, the eight climbers – Spanish according to the first information gathered – reached the Colle del Felik. Here, perhaps due to the poor visibility, they did not realize they were very close to the void below, ending up on a snow cornice that later gave way. The climbers fell onto the rock for 150-200 meters.
The accident occurred at an altitude of 4,061 meters and the recovery took place around 3,900 meters. From here, with stretchers, the rescuers of the Sav and the Alpine Rescue of the Guardia di Finanza of Cervinia took the victim and the three injured to the Sella refuge (3,585 meters).