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Two base jumpers die in separate accidents in French Alps

A 33 year-old Australian died after jumping from a 2,600-metre peak, while a 52 year-old Frenchman is thought to have hit a rockface.

La rédaction de Mediapart

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Two base jumpers have died in separate accidents in the French Alps on Sunday, bringing the death toll of the extreme sport in August to four, reports BBC News.

Rescue workers said a man from Australia is believed to have died on impact after jumping from an 8,500 feet (2,600m) peak near Chamonix.

A French man died shortly after in a similar accident in Mont Granier.

Base jumping is an extreme sport and carries far more risk than skydiving, according to a Norwegian study.

Police told French news agency AFP that the Australian man, 33, was wearing a wingsuit at the time, was found "several hundred metres below [the peak] in a wooded area," and probably died on impact.

The French base jumper was 52, and was described as "extremely experienced".

He is believed to have been killed after hitting a rock face on his descent from Mount Granier near the popular ski resort town of Val d'Isere.

One of the rescuers said that he "managed to clear the first rock face, but not the second,".

Read more of this report from BBC News.