Is Mont Blanc on your mountain-climb radar? Pause and reflect before you onward and upward. You may be required to pay a deposit of €15,000 (Rs 12,16,785) to cover the cost of rescue, or even a funeral.
This was announced last week by Jean-Marc Peillex, mayor of Saint-Gervais-Les-Bains, in response to several inexperienced people risking their lives to climb the mountain - despite warnings. The mayor described this as “a game of Russian roulette”.
Wondering about the very specific climbing fee? Here is the break-up. According to the mayor, the average cost of a rescue is euro 10,000 (Rs 8,10,423.51 approx.) whereas the cost of the funeral of a victim is euro 5,000 (Rs 4,05,211.75 approx). All in all, this leads to a specific deposit amount of euro 15,000 (Rs 12,16,785 approx).
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The mayor said that it was unacceptable for French taxpayers to cover the rescue as well as funeral costs of climbers.
The mayor also stated that ‘pseudo-mountaineers’ are ignoring warnings by local administration about climate conditions and this has led to several unfortunate accidents.
According to Peillex, the idea for charging for rescue and funeral services arose after five Romanian visitors attempted to scale Mont Blanc - in shorts, trainers, and straw hats. Fortunately, the mountain police caught them and asked them to turn back.
Current climatic conditions are another reason for this measure. The local administration has asked people not to take the route because of heavy rockfall in mid-July. The situation has worsened due to an intense heatwave in the region.
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Ascending Mont Blanc is not an easy climb. It is tricky and dangerous. One of the routes – the Gouter route – usually welcomes a less experienced group of climbers as it is easy. This is not the only route, however. Another route is on the Italian side via the ski resort town of Courmayeur. This route is risky. Only experienced and trained people take this route.
Since the announcement, the climbing fee has had its fair share of critics. For instance, mayor of Courmayeur Roberto Rota told the daily Corriere della Sera that the mountain was not anybody's property. "We, as administrators, can limit ourselves to reporting sub-optimal routes’ conditions, but asking for a deposit to climb to the top is surreal," he said.
