Snowstorm lashing through Chile's nature reserve killed one British woman along with five other tourists on Monday, November 17, 2025.
Victoria Bond, from Cornwall, England, was among other tourists who travelled to the Torres del Paine nature reserve in Chile for a trek across Patagonia. Still, her group became caught in a deadly blizzard.
Authorities in Chile named a 40-year-old public relations consultant as among those killed in the tourist hotspot of Torres del Paine National Park, in the southern part of the country.
Two German tourists and two Mexicans also died in the horror disaster on Monday, November 17, 2025, in the country’s most visited spot, famous for its granite peaks and nature.
Authorities informed that nine people went missing on Monday in the popular tourist destination, amid heavy snowfall and winds reaching up to 120mph.
A total of 24 people were involved in the search operation, including police officers, soldiers, mountain rescue personnel, and a search dog, while helicopters remained grounded due to severe weather.
The presidential delegate of the Magallanes region, José Antonio Ruiz, said that four among nine were rescued alive from a remote area in the mountains. Still, others were confirmed as dead as per the rescue authorities.
The presidential delegate identified the victims, adding, “We appreciate the effort of all civilian, military, public, and private institutions that participated in this operation.”
He added that preparations were underway to evacuate the bodies by air when the weather was good enough for helicopters to operate safely.
Guillermo Ruiz, the presidential delegate for the province of Ultima Esperanza, told reporters that the tourists became lost near the park’s Los Perros camp, reachable only by a four- to five-hour trek from the closest vehicle-accessible point.
November is late spring in the southern hemisphere of Chile, with the busiest months in Torres del Paine coming in the summer months between December and February.
The national park in southern Chile, with its mountains, glaciers, and rivers, is a popular destination for explorers.
The survey estimates that more than 367,000 tourists visited the reserve in 2024.
Chile’s president, Gabriel Boric, offered his condolences to the victims’ families in the "tragedy," and paid tribute to the rescue teams who had "worked tirelessly from the very beginning in the search, rescue, and now evacuation efforts."
