The two British climbers who frozen to death on the Matterhorn may have been trying a second attempt to summit the peak when a massive storm trapped them on a perilous, narrow snowfield in the dead of night.

Based on information from other climbers who encountered the pair on the southwest ridge of the 4,478-metre mountain, rescuers believe the two men had tried and failed to summit the day before and were trying a second time, but turned back too late.

When a helicopter rescue was finally possible 36 hours later, Finance Police Rescue Marshall Massimiliano Giovannini found Peter Rumble and Dennis Robinson buried under a snowdrift, unresponsive and lying on top of one another. Italian authorities said the two men, both age 67, were close friends and resided in France.

Desperate call

They had driven a camper to Cervinia, where Mr. Robinson’s companion was waiting anxiously as the two climbed.

Their first desperate call for help came in around 22:30 Thursday night. They were near a high steep corner fixed with chains, called the Grande Corde.

The steep, sloping slabs of exposed rock just below the 4241-metre Pic Tyndall minor summit are a particularly dangerous segment, especially in ice and snow.