Hiker’s final selfie minutes before death from Dolomites avalanche

A young mountain hiker sent a selfie to his brother alongside the text, ‘Look where I am’ – just 20 minutes before he tragically died.

An expert mountain hiker was all smiles when he and a group were climbing on the largest glacier in the northern Italian Dolomites.

Filippo Bari, 28, from Malo, Italy, was so excited about the hike that he took a selfie grinning and sent it to his brother, Andrea.

“Look where I am!” he wrote in the text.

But 20 minutes later he was tragically killed after a huge chunk of the Marmolada glacier broke off, sending an avalanche of ice, snow and rocks down the slope in the Italian Alps on Sunday.

Isola Vicentina mayor Francesco Gonzo reported on Monday that the body of the mountaineer had been found.

Filippo Bari, 28, from Italy, sent this selfie to his family just 20 minutes before he tragically died. Picture: Newsflash/Australscope

The father-of-one is among at least seven people killed in the avalanche, with five others still missing.

A devastated Andrea said his brother had sent him and their parents Emanuela and Giuseppe a grinning selfie of the mountainside while wearing a helmet and sunglasses before he went eerily silent.

About an hour later Filippo was among the first victims identified after the huge mass of the glacier broke off.

He had been planning on conquering Monte Rosa, a peak which straddles Italy and Switzerland, this week.

“Filippo was a great lover of the mountains and nature in general,” Andrea said.

“He had already done several high-altitude outings, always accompanied by experienced people and with all the necessary equipment.”

Filippo was climbing the Marmolada glacier when it collapsed, killing at least seven people. Picture: Pierre Teyssot/AFP

Filippo, who worked in a hardware store, leaves four-year-old-son Filippo and wife Jelena.

News of the dad’s death left family and friends heartbroken with social media awash with messages of condolences.

“I’m so crazy sad to find out my good friend from Italy Filippo Bari has passed away! I will never forget all the good times and awesome adventures we all had with him. Rest in peace old friend and God be with his family during this extremely sad time!” a friend posted on Facebook.

The Punta Rocca glacier that collapsed on the mountain of Marmolada after a record-high temperature of 10C was recorded at the summit. Picture: Tiziana Fabi/AFP

Another friend wrote: “Growing up in Italy was amazing but meeting Filippo Bari is what made Italy a home for me. He was my best friend and even a brother. I will always cherish my time spent with you Filipino. Yesterday we lost him in a horrible hiking accident. May you rest in peace.”

At the time of the avalanche, dozens of hikers were on excursions, some of them roped together.

A helicopter carries tubes with remote sensors to monitor the Marmolada glacier. Picture: Pierre Teyssot/AFP

Police officers stand guard in Canazei, two days after the collapse. Picture: Pierre Teyssot/AFP

As rescue operations continue, the Trentino Alpine Rescue Service said on Tuesday: “Operations on the ground will only be carried out to recover any remains discovered by the drones, to ensure rescuers’ safety.”

Experts were surveying the area to determine how best to enable teams with sniffer dogs to get on to the site safely on Wednesday or Thursday, the Service’s national chief Maurizio Dellantonio told AGI news agency.

A relative of a missing person is comforted at the scene. Picture: Pierre Teyssot/AFP

Relatives of people reported missing gathered at the town of Canazei, where recovered remains were placed in a makeshift morgue at a gymnasium.

“The important finds, not just bones, are first photographed, then recovered and put onto a helicopter [and flown to Canazei to be] catalogued and placed in cold storage,” Mr Dellantonio said.

Such finds included things such as rings, tattoos, “anything that can enable a person to be identified”, including shoes, backpacks and ice picks.

The disaster struck one day after a record-high temperature of 10C was recorded at the summit of Marmolada, the highest mountain in the Italian Dolomites.

People watch a rescue helicopter at work as it searches for missing hikers. Picture: Tiziana Fabi/AFP

This photograph taken on July 4 from Canazei, shows the ice serac that collapsed on the Marmolada mountain, near Punta Rocca. Picture: Pierre Teyssot/AFP

Andrea said he had told his brother to be careful in the mountains, “above all in these temperatures”.

Italy has blamed the collapse of the glacier on climate change and there are fears there could be more collapses, preventing access to much of the area currently being searched.

Prime Minister Mario Draghi said the collapse was certainly “linked to the deterioration of the environment and the climate situation”.

The Trento public prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation to determine the causes of the tragedy.

The glacier, nicknamed “queen of the Dolomites”, feeds the Avisio River and overlooks Lake Fedaia in the autonomous Italian province of Trento.

According to a March report by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), melting ice and snow is one of 10 major threats caused by global warming, disrupting ecosystems and infrastructure.

– with AFP