HIKER TRAGEDY
Brit hiker tragically confirmed dead after alpine rescuers find body on Italian mountain – as friend remains missing
The girlfriend of one of the missing men spoke about the search this morning
THE body of hiker Samuel Harris has been recovered after he went missing on a New Year's Day mountain hike with his friend who has not yet been found.
Fears grew after friends Aziz Ziriat, 36, and Samuel Harris, 35, failed to board their flight home after their holiday in the Italian Dolomites.
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Rescue crews uncovered a body buried in the snow of the mountains, Italian authorities revealed on Wednesday.
The heartbreaking discovery was made in the morning after a helicopter search was resumed following improved weather conditions.
An update later on Wednesday confirmed that the body was that of Brit hiker Harris who was declared dead by a doctor at around 1 pm.
Officials said: "After obtaining authorization from the judicial authorities to remove the body, the lifeless body of Samuel Harris was recovered by helicopter and transferred to Spiazzo (Tn), to be entrusted to the hearse.
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"The lifeless body of the mountaineer was found under the snow, at the foot of a rock face, at the base of the south face of Carè Alto.
"The dynamics of the accident are still being examined by the police but it is possible that the mountaineer fell from above."
The search was carried out by fifteen specialists from Alpine and Speleological Rescue as well as a dog unit all trained in avalanche searches.
But, the search for Aziz which was focused on the area near where Harris' body was found was halted at 1:30 pm due to poor weather conditions.
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"Fog and wind forced the helicopter to climb to a higher altitude to recover all the rescuers, unable to descend towards the valley by land due to the avalanche danger of grade 3," officials said.
The search for Aziz will continue "as soon as a window of good weather allows it," Alpine and Speleological Rescue stated.
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Rescuers were able to minimize the search area after the Tentino Emergenza helicopter carried out reconnaissance.
The search located the hikers' backpacks and equipment at the Malga Dosson bivouac where it was known the two hikers had reached.
It came after a video taken on 1 January showed the pals from London planned to leave their packs behind before moving on to the next valley.
DESPERATE SEARCH
The pair were last heard from on 1 January when their phones either died or lost signal after sending messages and photos home.
A desperate hunt for the friends, from London, was ignited after they failed to get on their flight home on January 6.
The first two days of the frantic search were hampered by heavy snowfall, fog, and avalanche warnings.
Rescue crews revealed they followed the hikers' last phone recordings which led them to a body, later discovered to belong to Harris.
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Officials confirmed at the time that the families of both men had been informed.
Their last known location was near a mountain hut called Casina Dosson, close to the town of Tione Di Trento, near Riva Del Garda, on Lake Garda.
DEVASTATED FAMILY
The friends' family members revealed Aziz and Sam were planning to go between huts in the mountain range on their New Year's hike.
Rebecca Dimmock, the girlfriend of Aziz, called the pair "experienced hikers" but revealed she last spoke to her boyfriend around 10 am on New Year's Day, according to reports.
She said: "He said his phone was about to die but he would write back to me properly soon."
Rebecca added: "I know they made it to the hut, and they were drinking red wine, but he said it was freezing."
Breaking down into tears this morning on Good Morning Britain, Rebecca shared the anguish their loved ones were experiencing.
She said: "There's just so many different possibilities and scenarios, that's the hardest thing. It doesn't make sense and we don't know what decisions they have made."
Rebecca added: "They are really experienced, they have been to some really harsh conditions."
Family and friends of the pair flew out to the Italian region last night to help rescue efforts.
Crystal Palace FC appealed for information yesterday to help find the duo as Aziz works for the club's official Palace For Life charity.
A desperate post from Palace on X said: "A member of the Palace For Life staff and his friend have been missing since 1st January in the Dolomites.
"If anyone knows the area, is able to support further or has any information that will help, please call 999 and reference CAD 0197/07 Jan25."
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Following the news of Harris' death, the charity said it was "devastated" and sent its "thoughts and deepest sympathies to his loved ones."
The rescue team has confirmed that the family members of the two hikers are being supported by psychologists in Italy.
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More to follow... For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
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