Taiwanese mountaineer dies from fall hiking Mont Blanc

Taipei and Paris, June 28 (CNA) Taiwanese mountaineer Chang Yuan-chih (張元植) has died from a fatal fall that occurred while he was hiking on the north face of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps and in Western Europe, his family confirmed Friday.

The accident happened at around 7 a.m. Thursday when the 36-year-old Chang was hiking the Plan de l'Aiguille area, his mother and wife said in a statement.

Chang has passed away, they said, and thanked everyone for their messages of condolences.

Chang's mother and wife said they were making arrangements to travel to France to bring his remains back to Taiwan.

"We will inform relatives and friends about the details of Yuan-chih's accident in due course. Thank you all for your concern and encouragement," they said.

According to a Franceinfo news report, a 36-year-old Taiwanese was found without vital signs by rescuers after he fell 250 meters down a slope when hiking up a "non-technical" stretch on the snowy northern side of the mountain with a friend on Thursday.

Chang had not yet started using a safety rope at the time of the accident, the report said, and his body and the survivor were subsequently transported to the DZ des Bois in the nearby town of Chamonix, the report said.

Chang seemed to be aware of the potential dangers of mountain climbing.

He once wrote on his social media account that mountaineering is a dangerous sport that can lead to death, but because there is a thin line between mountaineering and death, it is different from other sports, and enables people to appreciate what life is about, he said.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's representative office in France told CNA that its consular affairs section received confirmation of the identity of the deceased from authorities in Chamonix at around 9 a.m. Thursday.

Chang's family in Taiwan has been informed of the incident, the office said, adding that it would offer assistance to the family in dealing with the aftermath of Chang's death.