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Polish Foreign Ministry says men found in Swiss Alps may be Polish

27.08.2025 12:12
Swiss authorities have recovered the bodies of two men in the Alps, who could be Polish citizens, following a rock avalanche, officials say.
Paweł Wroński, spokesperson for the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Paweł Wroński, spokesperson for the Polish Ministry of Foreign AffairsPhoto: PAP/Radek Pietruszka

Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman Paweł Wroński said the embassy in Switzerland received information on Tuesday about the discovery.

“The bodies have been brought down, and the prosecutor’s office is conducting an investigation. The remains will be identified by the families in Bern,” he stated.

According to Wroński, the men were hiking in the canton of Valais, a mountainous region in southwestern Switzerland known for resorts such as Zermatt and Saas-Fee, when a rock avalanche struck.

The missing hikers, aged 52 and 76, had been reported missing since 22 August, after one of them sent an SOS signal. Rescue services responded immediately. When Swiss police arrived in the village of Saas-Grund, they found a car with Polish license plates, believed to be the hikers’ starting point.

The bodies were discovered during an aerial search in the Wiessmies massif, part of the Pennine Alps near the Italian border.

“They have been transported to Bern for identification. We do not yet have confirmation, but it is likely these are the men,” Wroński said, noting that families had been informed.

Experts suspect that the hikers were caught in a sudden rock avalanche that swept them down the mountainside.

(mp)

Source: MSZ/PR24/X/@RzecznikMSZ