3.000 EURO Fine for an Abuse of Search and Rescue Services on Mont Blanc
“Hey, Frank, we missed the last lift down!” “No worries, we have a search and rescue card – let’s call a heli!” If you have similar attitude in the French Alps, you could end up paying a fat fine and end up in jail, instead in Chamonix. A Swiss alpinist recently received a 3,000 Euro fine during his trek in the Mont Blanc area for his abuse of air search and rescue services.
Young Swiss alpinist from Bern was accused of providing untrue information in order to trigger a search and rescue operation in the Mont Blanc area. According to the French laws this offense is punishable by up to 30,000 EUR fine and 2 years of jail.
The event took place on June 18th while two mountaineers attempted an ascent of Les Droites via the Lagarde Couloir route (TD difficulty). Around 6 pm, the exhausted alpinists contacted the Chamonix responders (PGHM) who suggested a bivouac on the spot and asked them to finish the route the next day. Several hours later the pair contacted the Chamonix responders again, this time claiming frost bite injuries. Their call triggered a rescue operation. Despite being nighttime, the rescuers sent out a helicopter in order to transport the mountaineers to the local hospital. However, medical examination showed no signs of frostbite. The caller was charged with the abuse of mountain search and rescue, and legal proceedings were started. The Swiss mountaineer admitted that the pair panicked and did not want to spend the night at that elevation – close to 4,000 meters above sea level.
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The French authorities criticized the pair’s actions as irresponsible and scandalous. Their conduct caused unnecessarily risk for the rescuers and could have caused rescue complications in the event of someone else needing a rescue. The cost of these operations is also very high.
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