On 26 June 2011 a British hiker discovered the bodies of six climbers around while following a similar route taken by the group on the previous day. The local mayor, Xavier Cret, told the AFP news agency that the six mountaineers had been roped together in two groups and they have appeared to have died as the result of a mixed avalanche of snow and rocks. A local official stated that the victims included two men and three women between 42 and 64 and a 16-year-old boy. Police reported that the climbers appeared to have died while making an ascent in good weather.