In reply to TonyM:
> (In reply to cander)
> [...]
>
> Terribly sad. It was Benoit Drouillat and his brother Vincent who were killed.
>
> Benoit's second ascent on Manitua of the GJ North face was highlighted as one of the top achievements of the year in Jon Griffith's UKC Alpine Review of 2008 article. With Pascal Ducroz's earlier death, he was the second of that three person team to leave us. Having shared the intensity of climbing and success on that route, the news must be doubly devastating for Vanessa Francois.
Terrible, absolutely terrible news.
Benoit wasn't only an outstanding climber and mountaineer, but also a true artist, as his mountain pictures were starting to get appreciated even outside the (rather limited) clique of mountain enthusiasts. Check here to see by yourself
http://benoit-drouillat.com/
Apart from Manitua (a fine achievement), three years ago these days, Benoit, Pascal Ducroz and Franck Henry had climbed the "Gousseault" line on the Jorasses (if there's one truly legendary route on the Alps, that's it). Here's a picture of Benoit and Pascal taken back then:
http://archive.tvmountain.com/images/drouillat/006.jpg