Avalanche Kills 8 in Peru

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An avalanche on Alpamayo (19,511 feet) in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru killed eight foreign climbers in July. The incident occurred when a serac fell from near the top of the Southwest Face and plunged down the Ferrari Route, the peak’s popular ice climb. Four Germans, two Israelis, a Dutchman and an Argentine were about 500 feet below the summit ridge when the serac swept down the face’s narrow snow flutes and carried them to the base of the 45- to 55-degree wall. Three other climbers were killed earlier this summer in separate avalanches in the Cordillera Blanca.