Two climbers were descending Alpine summit when they fell to their deaths

Two Irish climbers who plunged to their deaths in a fall on an Alpine mountain had reached the summit and were descending when the accident happened.

Colm Ennis, a 37-year-old, originally from Co Waterford but living in Cork, and Peter Britton from Clonmel, died instantly when they fell 200ft while descending the Dent du Géant (Tooth of the Giant) at around 3pm Irish time on Sunday.

A spokesman for the emergency rescue service, the PGHM de Chamonix, told the Irish Examiner the climbers had spent Friday and Saturday night at the Refuge Torino, a high-mountain lodge at almost 11,000ft on the Mont Blanc massif on the French/Italian border.