Brit hiker, 70, found dead after vanishing in Spanish Pyrenees while climbing 8,700ft peak
A MISSING British hiker has been found dead in Spanish mountains after a sweeping search.
Police discovered the body of the 70-year-old man in Pyrenees after he vanished during his attempt to climb 8,700ft peak on Monday.
The grim discovery was made yesterday around 1pm local time in the western Pyrenees of Huesca, on the western side of the Aragon Alley.
Mountain search and rescue team from the Civil Guard’s Greim unit – the same specialists looking for Jay Slater in Tenerife – have been involved in the search efforts.
The unnamed man, from London, disappeared on Monday as he was reportedly hiking up the 8,678ft peak.
After the alarms were raised, the UK’s Interpol office tracked down an SOS wristband the hiker was wearing.
The three Greim officers were then able to uncover his whereabouts thanks to the wristband’s coordinates.
Footage released by the Civil Guard showed the operation to rescue the tragic hiker’s remains.
A helicopter was deployed to the scene to transfer the Brit’s body to a nearby mountain refuge to be handed over to funeral parlour workers.
The late hiker is understood to have been walking between the Lizara and Candanchu mountain refuges.
The towering peak overlooks the Spanish ski resort of Candanchu and the Somport pass on the border with France.
French police mountain rescue experts are also understood to have participated in the extensive operation to locate the missing man.
It has not yet been revealed what led to the tragic death of the British hiker.
It comes as Britain’s attention has been gripped with a mysterious disappearance of teenager Jay Slater in Tenerife.
The 19-year-old from Lancashire, has been missing since last Monday and has not been seen or heard from in the 12 days since.
Spanish cops continue to scour the mountainous terrain on the island where Jay was last known to be as they appeal for volunteers to join the search.
In November 2020, another British hiker Esther Dingley vanished while climbing 8,796ft Pico Salvaguardia in the Pyrenees.
Her remains were found in July 2021 near the spot where she disappeared.
Esther, 37, went trekking from the village of Benasque, around 175 miles east of the spot where the British pensioner’s body was found.