Coroner ‘shocked’ at lack of inquiry into two Alps deaths

A coroner has said it was “quite shocking” that no investigation was carried out in France into an accident in the Alps which claimed the lives of two Irish mountaineers.

Colm Ennis, aged 37, from Waterford, and Peter Britton, aged 55, from Clonmel, died when they fell 200m on Mont Blanc on July 27, 2014.

An inquest into the death of Mr Ennis was held in Waterford yesterday. It heard that they were both experienced climbers and always focused on safety.

Mr Ennis died due to shock as a result of multiple injuries sustained in the fall, including broken vertebrae, ribs and humerus (upper arm).

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Coroner John Goff said it was “a very unusual inquest” because Mr Ennis died in France and ‘there was absolutely no investigation carried out’ into his death in that country. I find that quite shocking really.”

“There was certain confusion when the body came back as to what the Irish authorities should or shouldn’t do. Usually this would be done in France.”

The inquest was held in Waterford as the postmortem was carried out on Mr Ennis’s body in University Hospital Waterford. A separate inquest will be held into Mr Britton’s death.

Mr Ennis’s sister, Michelle Power, a member of An Garda Síochána, read a report from France which said Mr Britton and Mr Ennis, having slept at an altitude of 3,371m, set off for Mont Blanc on the morning of July 27.

On the descent that afternoon, they were near a “corridor of snow” which would have brought them back easily to the refuge, but slipped and fell. “They fell 200 metres down a fast slope made of snow and rocks,” the report said.

Ms Power said it didn’t explain the cause of the fall. She said they were very experienced climbers.

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