Wednesday January 1, two hikers aged 33 and 46 died in Haute-Garonne. Their equipment was not a priori adapted to the conditions, in particular the hardness of the snow which became “almost ice” after a mild spell.
A dark day. Two women died on Wednesday, January 1, a few hours apart in Haute-Garonne, in the same sector of the Pyrenees, on the ridge between Cagire and l'Escalette, after slipping and falling from a height of 300 meters. The first accident , which took place early in the morning in the town of Boutx, caused the death of a 33-year-old woman who had gone walking, accompanied by two other people, with insufficient equipment for this type of hike in winter, according to the CRS at the Luchon aid station.
“The current conditions are very difficult”
A few hours later, a comparable accident, also near the Cagire peak, but in the town of Arguenos, caused the death of a 46-year-old woman. She had left with her companion, also “with shoes that are not necessarily suitable”, while the snow, which has become “almost ice”, is currently extremely slippery.
“We had snowfall, then it rained and it froze with the temperatures,” explained the CRS, who warn: “We have to be vigilant.” “The current conditions are very difficult, developed with the Midday Dispatch Major Sébastien Abadie, head of the CRS Pyrénées mountain section. There is no more powder in the mountains. Following the mild spell, the snow has hardened on all slopes. The snow cover is higher in altitude.”
-“You must be equipped with ice crampons”
At the start of the week, the Luchon high mountain gendarmerie platoon had already intervened on the north face of the Cagire peak to rescue a hiker who had “unscrewed over a dizzying distance of a hundred meters before hitting trees”, explained Major Lucéna, commander of the PGHM, to the Midday Dispatch. The 42-year-old man was seriously injured in his arms and legs, but was “very lucky” to get away with it, according to the major. Although he was well equipped, his shoes were not suitable for the very hard snow.
“With current conditions, you have to be equipped with ice crampons, or you have to practice [les raquettes] in the resort, on snowy slopes”, added Major Abadie, who calls for “exercise caution”. “Concerning ski touring, here too you must be equipped with crampons and an ice axe, whether on the north or south slopes.” According to information given to the local newspaper by the CRS, a decree intended to temporarily prohibit access to the Escalette massif is being drafted.
The mountains have been particularly deadly this year, with at least 14 people dying in France in avalanches.
