French police confirmed that a body of a man was found in the French Alps last week, and is the body of a missing British skier, John Bromell.
John Bromell, 39, from Willingham by Stow, near Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, was last seen on the Paquis chairlift in Tignes, on 7 January.
Mr Bromell was last seen taking the Paquis ski lift in the Tovière sector of Tignes at around 4.30pm that day.
He had been on the slopes with family during the day but returned alone “for one last run” despite worsening weather amid atrocious conditions across Europe that left thousands stranded.
An aerial search failed to locate Mr John Bromell and snowfall and extreme avalanche risk had prevented extensive searches on the ground for the missing Briton.
Local newspaper Le Dauphiné Libéré cited police as saying that the body of a 39-year old British skier was found over the weekend between the lakes of Tignes and Chevril.
John Bromell’s disappearance followed the death of Owen Lewis, 22, from Coventry, whose frozen body was found after he went missing from Risoul, another resort in the French Alps, the previous week.
This ski season has been particularly deadly in the French Alps due to extreme snowfall and avalanche risks. At the time of John Bromell’s disappearance, there was more than 1m (3ft) of snow reported in the resort, with a warning about the risk of avalanches issued.
By mid-March, there had been 23 reported deaths, more than the two previous seasons combined.
Freak snowfall saw thousands trapped in Zermatt with scores forced to be heliported to safety. Parts of the French Alps saw the heaviest fall in 30 years.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: “Our staff are supporting the family of a British man following his death and we are in contact with the French authorities.”
More info on the Telegraph.
We have been covering at The-Ski-Guru unfortunately too many avalanche and off-piste accidents this year. To name a few of the last ones, there were three different accidents, claiming 9 lives in Switzerland over a weekend. Two skiers also fall to their death in the French Alps near Chamonix for venturing off-line. Also a French man fall to his death in the French Alps of Alpe d’Huez. covered also how a storm and the heavy ice on the lift line, brought down the Panoramic Mont Blanc lift. We’ve also written how resorts work on containing avalanches, with the first of a series of interviews to Coco Torres, former Mountain Operations Head of Valle de Las Leñas.
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