Mont Blanc mayor denies free helicopter rescue to 32 alpinists

The Mayor of Saint-Gervais, Jean-Marc Peillex, has sparked debate after refusing to provide free helicopter evacuations for 32 alpinists on Mont Blanc. The group had spent the night at the Goûter refuge, located at 3,835 meters, after climbing despite official warnings regarding extreme rockfall risks in the Couloir du Goûter caused by high temperatures and drought.

Authorities determined that the climbers were not in immediate life-threatening danger, as weather conditions had stabilized enough to allow for a descent on foot. Consequently, public rescue services declined the request for a free airlift. To avoid the dangerous descent through the rockfall zone, some climbers opted to hire private helicopters at their own expense, while others chose to walk down the mountain.

Mayor Peillex described the climbers' decision to ignore warnings from mountain guides and local authorities as a ‘game of Russian roulette.’ He stated that this incident should serve as a precedent to reform mountain rescue rules, ensuring that public resources are reserved for genuine emergencies rather than those resulting from avoidable recklessness.