Body of missing Belgian found in the Pyrenees

The Spanish Mountain Rescue Service has recovered the body of a 30-year-old Belgian mountaineer that had been missing in the Pyrenees. The man’s body was found on Monday. The man had been missing for several days after failing to return to a mountain hut.

Mountain climber in the Pyrenees.

By Jean Claude van Damme

Spanish police were informed of the Belgian’s disappearance at 7am on the morning of Friday 20 September. The 30-year-old had not returned to the mountain hut he was due to have stayed in on Thursday night after having climbed to the summit of Aneto, the highest mountain in the Pyrenees.

The man had said he would spend the night in the mountain hut, but never arrived there. He was reported missing and a major search and rescue operation was launched. However, poor weather conditions hampered the search. It wasn’t until Sunday that the 30-year-old’s body was located by an aircraft that was helping with the search.

On Monday a search and rescue team was able to recover the 30-year-old’s remains. The cause of death is still unclear. The Spanish authorities are considering several hypotheses, ranging from a possible fall due to the difficult terrain to hypothermia due to the bad weather conditions. An autopsy will be carried out to ascertain the exact cause of death.

The Belgian Foreign Ministry says it is aware of the man’s death and that it is following developments closely.