Pyrenees: 89-year-old hiker dies after fall

An 89-year-old experienced hiker dies in the Hautes-Pyrénées, highlighting the persistent risks in the mountains despite experience

An 89-year-old hiker died Thursday in the Hautes-Pyrénées, in the commune of Cauterets, after falling, mountain rescuers announced Friday. "He was hiking above Lake Estom with his wife and during the descent, he fell a few meters and died," said the Pyrenees high mountain gendarmerie platoon (PGHM).

"He was a seasoned mountaineer," added the PGHM, whose intervention took place in adverse weather conditions, which "made the rescue a little difficult." "The helicopter took us as far as possible, but it couldn't reach the victim. It landed us and we finished on foot," he added, adding that when the rescuers arrived, the SAMU doctor could only confirm the death.