Dutch mountaineer dies while climbing in the Swiss Alps

BERLIN – Swiss authorities say a 60-year-old Dutchman has died while climbing in the Alps.

Swiss police said Tuesday that the man was part of a group of three mountaineers climbing the Dent Blanche mountain, one of the highest peaks in the Alps.

At about 5 p.m. Monday he lost his footing and fell about 300 metres (nearly 1,000 feet) down the mountain. The other two notified rescue crews.

A helicopter with an emergency doctor and two mountaineers were dispatched immediately to the area but found the man already dead when they got there. The other two climbers were flown back from the scene.

Police released no further details about the victim or the other climbers.