Matterhorn guides suspend Italian-side ascents after 3,900-metre rockfall

After a large rockfall broke from the mountain’s south face on Wednesday, 5 August, the Società Guide del Cervino has temporarily suspended guided Matterhorn ascents from Italy.

The collapse started around 3,900 metres and sent rock down an area generally avoided by mountaineers. No one was involved or injured, according to the Valle d’Aosta Unique Rescue Center, while the regional Forestry Corps monitored the site.

Video recorded from the Breuil-Cervinia area showed debris moving down the face and a large dust cloud spreading above the valley. The Matterhorn is known as Cervino in Italy, and Breuil-Cervinia is the resort and settlement below its Italian side.

The Lion Ridge, or Cresta del Leone, the standard Italian path to the 4,478-metre summit, was not affected by the rockfall. The guides said their decision also takes into account several days of persistent thunderstorms and the need to reassess the mountain’s conditions.

“Following the rockfall that occurred today on the south face of the Cervino, together with the persistent thunderstorms of recent days, the Società Guide del Cervino has temporarily suspended guided ascents of the Cervino with its clients,” the organisation said in a statement reported by AostaSera.

Independent climbers advised to postpone attempts

The suspension applies to the Società Guide del Cervino’s guided clients; authorities have not reported a legal closure of the mountain. Independent climbers have been strongly advised to delay their attempts until the weather and rock conditions improve.

“We would like to clarify that the rockfall did not affect the Italian normal route, known as the Lion Ridge,” the guides said. “Pending an improvement in conditions, we strongly recommend exercising the utmost caution and advise climbers not to attempt the ascent.”

Capanna Carrel, the bivouac on the Italian route, remains available for emergency shelter or overnight use. It is not staffed or supervised during the suspension, and climbers considering the route have been told to seek current information from local guide services before leaving.

Thunderstorms earlier in the week caused mudslides and debris flows elsewhere around Breuil-Cervinia. Water and debris affected the Grandes Murailles, Mont Tabel and Avouil areas, damaging hiking trails and stream crossings as well as parts of the Cervino Golf Club. Those flows and the Matterhorn rockfall occurred during the same unsettled period but in different locations.

The precise cause of the 5 August collapse has yet to be established, and authorities have not published an estimate of the volume of rock involved. Heat and degrading permafrost can reduce stability on fractured Alpine faces, while rainfall, snowmelt and repeated freezing and thawing also affect the rock. A geological assessment would be required to connect any one factor to this event.

Summer rockfalls are a familiar hazard on the Matterhorn. In 2003, a major collapse near the Cheminée on the Lion Ridge led to evacuations and changes to the route, and additional incidents were reported in 2020, 2022 and 2023. The slide was outside the normal Italian line.

Separate concerns have affected the Swiss side this summer. Guides in Zermatt reportedly stopped accepting new Matterhorn clients from mid-July following earlier rockfall and climbing incidents, although the Swiss route and Hörnlihütte were not reported legally closed. Climbers on either side should check the latest position with local guides before setting out.

Cover image credit: Photo by @angelomcmxcv on unsplash.com