Remains of two Belgian climbers missing since 1992 found on Swiss glacier

Discovery on Trift Glacier

A hiker traversing the Trift Glacier in the Swiss municipality of Saas-Grund discovered exposed human remains on 26 July 2026. The hiker promptly alerted regional emergency dispatchers, prompting the Valais Cantonal Police and mountain rescue services to launch an immediate recovery mission on the glacier. Rescue specialists secured the high-altitude site and retrieved both bodies from the melting ice surface. Personnel then transported the remains directly to the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the Hospital of Valais in Sion for comprehensive post-mortem examinations. The retrieval operation initiated formal administrative and forensic procedures to resolve a cold case dating back more than three decades.

Disappearance on Weissmies peak

The two climbers were Belgian nationals who were 39 and 41 years old when they vanished in the autumn of 1992. On 4 September 1992, the pair checked out of the Weissmies mountain hut with the objective of scaling the 4,017-metre summit of the Weissmies. Their mountaineering itinerary required traversing the peak before beginning their descent toward the Almagell hut on the opposite side of the massif. Deteriorating weather and severe conditions moved across the mountain during their ascent, preventing the men from reaching their destination. Over the following autumn and winter months, alpine search teams conducted multiple search operations across the slopes and ridges. Those initial searches yielded only a single backpack left behind in the snow, with no other signs of the climbers found until July 2026.

Forensic identification in Sion

Following the transfer of the bodies to the cantonal capital of Sion, forensic medical specialists performed comparative genetic analysis using samples from the recovered remains. Investigators cross-referenced the newly extracted DNA profiles against reference data connected to the unresolved 1992 disappearance. The Valais Cantonal Police officially announced the conclusive identification in a press statement released on Wednesday, 19 August 2026.

A direct comparison of DNA profiles made it possible to formally establish that these were two mountaineers reported missing in the Weissmies region since 1992.

The definitive laboratory results verified that the remains were those of the two Belgian mountaineers who disappeared during their ascent 34 years earlier. The formal identification allowed cantonal authorities to close the forensic case file and notify the relevant consular authorities.

Glacier retreat and missing persons records

The discovery on the Trift Glacier reflects a recurring pattern across the Swiss Alps, where melting ice continues to uncover long-lost mountaineering gear and casualties from past expeditions. Warm summer conditions have accelerated the retreat of glacial ice, exposing terrain that had been continuously frozen for decades.

With the retreat of glaciers, remains of people who disappeared in the mountains several decades ago are sometimes brought to light.

To handle these recurring findings, the Valais Cantonal Police maintains a specialized register of missing persons with active entries dating back to 1925. The archive focuses primarily on unresolved disappearances in high-altitude Alpine environments, river systems, and mountain water bodies. Forensic teams and regional investigators rely on this century-old ledger to cross-reference newly exposed personal items and human remains whenever glacier retreat reveals decades-old accident sites.