Two climbers killed on Monte Pasubio as Italian Alps weekend death toll hits nine

The fall near Sojo d'Uderle

Around midday on Sunday, a 26-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman fell roughly 100 metres on the Vicenza side of Monte Pasubio, in the exposed Sojo d'Uderle area. The three climbers were roped together, but the third member remained secured to the rock face and escaped injury. The alarm was raised immediately, but emergency medical personnel on arrival found that both young climbers had died from the impact.

The recovery operations are still ongoing and are particularly complex due to fog at altitude, which is making the work of rescuers difficult.

Rescue in poor weather

A Trento emergency helicopter managed to locate and winch the surviving climber, who was in shock, and transported him to hospital. Thick fog and adverse conditions hampered the retrieval of the bodies, and operations continued into the afternoon. The exact cause of the fall is still under investigation, with rescuers gathering evidence from the site.

A weekend of high-altitude tragedies

The Monte Pasubio deaths add to what Italian media are calling a black weekend on the Alps. On Saturday, seven climbers died in four separate incidents: three Trentino climbers fell over 400 metres on the north face of the Gran Paradiso; two died along the Kuffner ridge on Mont Maudit in the Mont Blanc massif; one on the normal route of the Matterhorn (Cervino); and a hiker was found dead on the Brenva glacier. With Sunday's two victims, the total death toll on Italian peaks this weekend has reached nine.