The British skier killed after falling 2,000ft down a mountain in the Alps pictured smiling in the sunshine less than one hour before he died

• David Tapsfield, 28, was ski touring when he was killed in the French Alps
• The experienced mountaineer fell nearly 2,000ft in a huge avalanche
• He was accompanied by a friend during tour of Mont Buet, near Chamonix
  

By Alexandra Williams for MailOnline

Published: 06:14 EST, 28 February 2014 | Updated: 08:22 EST, 28 February 2014

Skier Dave Tapsfield smiled for a picture in the sunshine after summiting an Alpine mountain this week – but less than one hour after it was taken he was tragically swept to his death in a huge avalanche.

The Scotsman who mounted a courageous rescue effort to rescue Mr Tapsfield has spoken movingly of the tragedy.

Lorne Cameron, 29, has told how he desperately battled in vain to save his friend after he was flung down the mountain.

Tragedy: This picture of Dave Tapsfield was taken less than an hour before he was swept to his death in an avalanche

Fall: The red line shows the path of the avalanche that Mr Tapsfield was swept along by

The experienced mountaineers were skiing on Mont Buet, near Chamonix in France, when a snow cornice, an overhanging edge of snow on a ridge, suddenly collapsed from under Mr Tapsfield.

Lorne watched in horror as Mr Tapsfield, 28, from Whitley Bay, was engulfed by snow.

He skied over the avalanche debris and managed to locate him after 20 minutes by using his avalanche transceiver.

Mr Lorne, originally from Glasgow, saw one of Mr Tapsfield’s hands protruding from the snow and frantically dug him out. But he was dead.

Local rescue workers have praised Mr Lorne’s efforts, describing him as ‘undeniably very, very courageous’.

The tragedy happened at about 1pm on Tuesday on Mont Buet.

The men had summitted at 11.30am and were descending.

Courageous: Lorne Cameron (left) has told how he desperately tried to save Mr Tapsfield (right), skiing down treacherous terrain to reach him

Speaking from Chamonix, Mr Lorne, who has attended training courses with the Avalanche Academy in Chamonix, said: ‘We were on our way down after a five-hour hike up. Dave was in a great mood. It was a beautiful day.

‘I was in the front. Dave was behind and slightly to the right.

‘We knew there were cornices. We were skiing parallel to the ridge about five to six metres from the edge.

‘Suddenly, without warning, I fell to the ground. There was a crash, a boom sound. It was loud. I fell away from the ridge edge.

‘I looked up and saw Dave. He had fallen too but then I saw him literally bouncing over the precipice.

‘We had skied over a cornice and it had broken off. Dave was just a step closer and he bounced over with the broken edge of cornice.

‘It was four to five metres in depth. It was a huge mass that collapsed off the ridge on to the slope below.

‘This triggered an avalanche. The avalanche was massive. I could see Dave. Maybe for one second I could see him being carried off in the avalanche. I lost sight of him about 100 metres into the avalanche. He was completely engulfed in it.

I had no idea of the terrain. Dave had been taken down terrain we had no plans of going into. It was steep. At least 40 to 45 degrees in gradient.

Location: The accident took place on Mont Buet in the French Alps, near the ski resort of Chamonix

‘The avalanche kept going and going. There were clouds of snow billowing into the air. It was a massive cloud. There was no mistaking that it was a huge avalanche.

‘I stood up. I was less than a metre from the edge of the ridge. I was on the new edge, where the cornice had broken off.

‘I desperately wanted to get to Dave as quickly as I possibly could.  I knew I had to ski down the avalanche debris.

‘It was a 10 metre drop down off the edge so I had to hike back up and find a way around.

‘I found a way to get on to the avalanche path. The avalanched snow grabbed at my skis.

‘It was now about five minutes since I had seen Dave. I switched my transceiver to search mode and swept it from side to side, desperate to pick up a signal from Dave’s transceiver.

‘The avalanche terrain was tough. There was a huge swathe of bare ice. The avalanche had stripped all the snow away. There were exposed rocks.

‘I suddenly picked up Dave’s signal quite a bit further down. I honed in on the area and then I saw one of Dave’s hands on the surface of the snow.

‘I grabbed it. I shouted his name. I kept shouting. His hand was bare. The glove had been ripped off. It was cold and it was limp.

Accident: David Tapsfield fell when a snow cornice, an overhanging edge of snow on a ridge, collapsed from under him

‘I started digging. Digging, digging, digging. I uncovered his face first, then freed his chest. I knew in my heart there was no hope but I couldn’t give up.

‘It must have been after about 15 minutes between turning on my transceiver to search mode and finding him.

‘I pulled my phone out. There was no signal. I started giving Dave CPR. I remember thinking if I could get oxygen into him there might be hope, however slim. My phone still had no signal.

‘Between every set of two breaths and two chest compressions I checked the signal on my phone.

‘Suddenly that bar of signal was there. I called a friend of Dave’s and mine, Angus Paterson. I thought it was better to get a quick message to him in case my phone cut out. I just shouted down the phone to him that we needed a heli on the north east face of Mt Buet and that there had been a big avalanche.

‘I got back to the CPR. It was all I could do. It was traumatic. So traumatic. Trying to resuscitate Dave was so nasty. It was horrible. I tried and I tried but he was dead. The reality was, he was dead when I found him.’

Mr Lorne was helicoptered off the mountain.

Popular: Chamonix, famed for its challenging terrain, is visited by thousands of skiers and snowboarders every year

A Chamonix police spokesman said: ‘Lorne saw the avalanche and he was first on the scene to rescue his friend.

‘It meant skiing over the avalanche debris and then searching for him with his Arva (avalanche transceiver). He administered first aid at the scene until the mountain rescue arrived.

‘He was undeniably very, very courageous.

‘A cornice had ruptured and the victim had fallen 600 metres.

‘The fall triggered the slide of a huge mass of snow or an avalanche.’

A snow cornice is formed by wind blowing snow over a sharp terrain break, such as the crest of a mountain or along the sides of gullies, where it attaches and builds out horizontally. It is extremely dangerous to ski or hike on them or underneath them.

The vulnerability of the structure poses a high risk of triggering avalanches. They are particularly dangerous during sunny weather.

The area has experienced warm weather during the past week.

On Thursday Mr Tapsfield’s parents and two of his sisters arrived in Chamonix to identify his body and collect his possessions.

Mr Tapsfield had moved to Chamonix a few years ago to pursue his love of the mountains and set up a successful sausage-making business selling his wares to local restaurants and pubs.

As a teenager he was part of the Football Development Scheme for 16 to 19-year-olds at Tyne Metropolitan College in North Tyneside.

In 2005 he won a scholarship at Lafeyatte College in New Jersey, USA, one of the top six colleges in the country, to study and play the game.