The preserved body of a 20-year-old female mountaineer has been found. Marta Altamirano went missing in 1981

Marta Altamirano disappeared in 1981 during a mountain expedition in the Andes. Rescuers searched unsuccessfully for more than four decades for the young climber’s body. Until now.

Marta Altamirano, to those close to her, “Patty,” had her whole life ahead of her. However, no one imagined that an expedition to a peak of more than 6720 meters in the Andes in 1981 would turn out to be the last for the young mountaineer. The 20-year-old fell into a crevasse in a glacier during the climb and all trace of her disappeared.

Rescuers tried unsuccessfully to find the woman’s body. They have now succeeded, and completely by accident. After more than four decades, a group of climbers came across the corpse of the missing woman.

Marta Altamirano: the body of a female mountaineer was found after 42 years

Marta Altamirano decided to climb one of the highest mountain peaks in South America in 1981. The expedition to Mercedario, which began on March 23 — as it later turned out, a fateful one — also included, among others, the deceased’s sister, Corina Altamirano. The woman revealed that the tragic incident occurred at an altitude of about 4,300 meters above sea level, when the group decided to pitch tents and gather strength for further climbing.

Martha, who had wandered away from the rest to explore the area, unhappily slipped and fell into a crevasse. Since then, hearing of her has disappeared. The body of the 20-year-old, after part of the pass collapsed, was buried in a pile of snow. Despite numerous rescue operations, the whereabouts of the mountaineer’s corpse have not been established.

Although more than 40 years have passed since Marta Altamirano’s tragic death, the woman’s family has never lost faith that the emergency services will find her body. At the end of January, on the south face of Mercedario, a group of climbers came across the frozen corpse of the 20-year-old quite by accident. Those closest to the victim had no doubt that it was Marta. The ice and snow had preserved the body so much that it had hardly decomposed.

“We are happy to know that the body of our sister, wanted for such a long time, has finally been found,” admitted the deceased’s sister, Corina Altamirano. She attended the autopsy in the city of San Juan in western Argentina. — “(Marta) told us that if she ever dies in the mountains, we should bury her in the mountaineers’ cemetery in Mendoza or leave her where she dies. What better place than Mercedario? I think this is her home,” Corina added.

In accordance with current procedures, in addition to an autopsy, DNA tests will be conducted to confirm the identity of the woman found.

Recall that a similar story occurred in 2010, when the corpse of a man was found in the Rocky Mountains in Canada. Subsequent investigations confirmed that he was William Holland of the United States, whom the services and family had been searching for two decades. The body — due to weather conditions — was in almost intact condition.

The mountaineer was buried by an avalanche after, a rocky ledge collapsed on him. The rescue operation was repeatedly resumed, but to no avail. At the time of the tragedy, the American was 38 years old.

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