Mountain climbers escape avalanche

Three climbers have had a lucky escape after an avalanche swept them about 650ft down a mountain side.

The men had been tackling the North Gully at Stob Ban near Fort William when a snow face gave way, causing them to tumble down the slope.

Another group of climbers saw the men slide down the mountain and used a mobile phone to contact the emergency services.

William Graves and Philip Jackson, both 27 and from London, and Matthew Goodyear, 32, from Edinburgh, were rescued by Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team.

The friends, who had been roped together during their climb, were taken by RAF rescue helicopter to the Belford Hospital in Fort William.

They were treated for minor injuries and discharged shortly afterwards.

The incident prompted police to issue a warning to climbers to check conditions and make sure they had proper equipment to deal with the icy weather.

A spokesman for Northern Constabulary said: "The snow band started to slip where the climbers were and an avalanche took the party approximately 200 metres down the slope."

He said the men, who had started their climb at 9.30am, had been about two-thirds of the way to the summit when the snow slope started to avalanche.

The spokesman added: "There is no doubt that these men had a very lucky escape indeed."