Nicolai Haugsted
King Charles reveals haunting memory from the day tragedy struck the royal family.
King Charles III has spoken publicly about one of the most traumatic moments of his life, revisiting the skiing avalanche that nearly killed him in Switzerland and claimed the life of one of his closest friends.
The rare remarks came during a meeting with members of the Assynt Mountain Rescue Team in Scotland, where the King reflected on an event he has seldom discussed in public since it happened in 1988.
Charles reportedly raised the subject while hosting the rescue team at the Castle of Mey on August 1 during celebrations marking the organization’s 50th anniversary.
According to team leader Ben Dyson, the monarch described surviving the avalanche as “a close thing.”
Dyson told The Times that the King referred to the incident while discussing the dangers of mountain environments.
“He spoke of the near miss he had in that avalanche in the context of the dangers mountains contain.”
Dyson added that the experience clearly remains vivid for Charles decades later and helped shape his appreciation for mountain rescue workers and the risks they face.
Friend lost in the disaster
The avalanche struck on March 10, 1988, while Charles—then Prince of Wales—and a group of friends were skiing off-piste above Klosters, Switzerland, a resort long associated with the British royal family.
The snow swept through the group, killing Major Hugh Lindsay, a former equerry to Queen Elizabeth II and one of Charles’ close friends.
Patti Palmer-Tomkinson was also caught in the avalanche and suffered serious leg injuries.
Charles and several others escaped unharmed before returning alongside their guide and a Swiss police officer to help dig Lindsay and Palmer-Tomkinson out of the snow.
Lindsay later died in hospital at the age of 34.
A tragedy that stayed with him
Lindsay’s wife, Sarah, was six months pregnant when he died. Their daughter, Alice, was born later that year, with Charles becoming her godfather.
The King has rarely spoken publicly about the tragedy, though he previously admitted in a letter that the loss remained difficult to comprehend.
“I still find it hard to understand why I survived and he didn’t.”
Princess Diana and Sarah Ferguson had also been on the skiing holiday but remained at their chalet when the avalanche struck. Diana later explained that illness had kept her from joining the excursion that day.
Charles, who had enjoyed skiing since the 1960s, has gradually left the sport behind. During a visit to England last year, he summed up his decision simply.
“I think my skiing days are behind me.”
