Melting Swiss glacier reveals bodies of mountaineers missing since 1992

The persistent heatwave this summer has caused widespread disruption across Europe, from devastating wildfires to critically low river levels. The record-low water levels of the Danube have already made headlines after several Second World War-era warships resurfaced, along with human remains believed to belong to German soldiers killed during the Siege of Budapest. Now, unusually high temperatures have led to a similar discovery in a vastly different setting, high in the Swiss Alps.

Bodies of people who disappeared decades ago have been uncovered as retreating glaciers expose areas that had remained frozen for years. The latest discovery was announced by Swiss authorities this week, as Belgian media outlets report.

A hiker on the Trift Glacier discovered the remains of two mountaineers who had been missing since 1992, Swiss police said on August 19.

"Due to the retreat of the glaciers, it happens again and again that the mortal remains of people who disappeared in the mountains several decades ago come to light," Swiss authorities said.

The recovered bodies are believed to belong to two Belgian men who were 39 and 41 years old when they disappeared. DNA analysis identified the remains "beyond doubt", officials said.

Local police said they maintain records of missing-person reports dating back to 1925. The list consists "mainly [of] people who have disappeared in the high mountains or in rivers and bodies of water", authorities said.

Extreme weather exposes remains all across globe

The latest discovery came amid this summer’s heatwave, but melting glaciers and changing ecosystems have exposed human remains in other parts of the world in recent years.

In 2025, the body of Dennis Bell, a 25-year-old man who died on an Antarctic glacier in 1959, was discovered by a Polish expedition.

That same year, the remains of a 31-year-old Pakistani man who had been missing for 28 years were found near the edge of a melting glacier in Pakistan.

The discovery in the Swiss Alps follows a series of unusual findings linked to retreating glaciers and falling water levels.

In Budapest, exceptionally low levels of the Danube exposed several German warships dating from the Second World War, as well as human remains believed to belong to German soldiers who died during the fighting in the city.

Similarly, low water levels at an American lake outside Las Vegas led to the discovery of human remains in August. Authorities are still investigating the circumstances surrounding that case.

As glaciers continue to retreat and water levels fall in rivers and lakes, previously inaccessible areas are increasingly being exposed, revealing objects and human remains that have remained hidden for decades.

By Nazrin Sadigova