Death of tourists in Valbona, Belgian media: They had the fate of a German!

2023-05-11 09:46:06Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Death of tourists in Valbona, Belgian media: They had the fate of a German!

The Belgian media reported today the news about the death of the Belgian tourist in Albania, Myrthe Baets, 25 years old, who died after falling down the cliff together with her friend from France, Joanna Blocaille.

The Brusselstimes write that the girls did not follow the rules of the tourist guide and that the Valbona Pass is known as a dangerous place. The media adds that the young women had the fate of a German citizen who, a year ago, slipped and fell in the same place.

A Belgian and a French tourist have lost their lives while exploring nature in Albania. They both fell into the precipice. Albanian police identified the Belgian victim as Myrthe Baets, a 25-year-old from the Flemish municipality of Elewijt, Belgian media write. 

She had traveled to Europe with her boyfriend. The French tourist has been named by authorities as Joanna B. The two had gone hiking without a guide near the Valbona valley. The area is known as a dangerous place for hikers due to the mountainous terrain. A German tourist previously died there in May this year.

Myrthe and Joanna had the same fate, who slipped and fell. It is learned that an avalanche occurred afterwards. Emergency services and officers were called and immediately went to the scene, but their initial search for the climbers was hampered by "bad weather".

The bodies of both victims were found after 24 hours by Albanian authorities working with their Belgian and French counterparts. They will now return home to be escorted to the last apartment.

Baets Myrthe, 25, and Joanna Blocaille, had gone hiking in the mountainous terrain that connects the valley of Valbona with the tourist village of Theth. The two girls had started without a guide and after leaving Thethi, they faced the snow.

The girls lost their way and because of the fog, they slipped through the snow and fell down a slope. Later, an avalanche hit them, an impact that proved fatal for the young women's lives.


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