A receding glacier in the Swiss Alps has uncovered the remains of two Belgian climbers who disappeared over thirty years ago, authorities announced on Wednesday.
A hiker discovered the bodies on the Trift Glacier on July 26, after thawing ice revealed them, according to Valais canton police.
Officials recovered the remains and forwarded them to a forensic medicine institute at a hospital in Sion for identification.
A view of the Trift suspension bridge at the Trift Glacier in Valais, Switzerland, on Jan. 2, 2018. (BlueRed/REDA/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
DNA analysis confirmed that the remains belonged to two Belgian men who went missing in the Weissmies region in 1992; they were aged 39 and 41 at the time of their disappearance.
Valais police maintain missing‑person records dating back to 1925, many of which involve individuals who vanished in mountainous terrain or bodies of water.
The glacial ice avalanche of the Trift Glacier above the village in Saas-Grund, Valais, Switzerland, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017. (Dominic Steinmann/Keystone via AP, File)
As glaciers continue to retreat, long‑buried remains occasionally surface, police noted.
Similar finds have occurred elsewhere in Switzerland in recent years; in 2023, DNA testing identified a body recovered from a glacier near the Matterhorn as a German climber who had been missing since 1986.
Regional police shared an image of Trift Glacier near Saas-Grund, Valais, Switzerland. (Valais Cantonal Police)
Swiss glaciers are receding at an accelerating pace, a development that some scientists attribute to rising global temperatures.
Also Read
- Gaza’s Black Market Flourishes as Israeli Restrictions Drive Up Prices and Enrich Smugglers
- Polymarket Employs Former FBI Staffer for Full-Time Trader Surveillance, CEO Reveals
- Cameroon’s Elderly President Returns Home After Extended Overseas Stay
- Stocks Settle Lower as Rising Crude Prices Spur Inflation Fears
