The bodies of two Italian and two South Korean climbers have been found close to the peak of Mont Blanc on the French side after they went missing in bad weather, officials say.

The Chamonix-Mont Blanc search and rescue team found the two pairs of climbers at an altitude of 4700m on the Alps’ highest peak. They died of hypothermia, rescue officials said.

The unaccompanied climbers had alerted rescuers on Saturday afternoon, but weather conditions continued to deteriorate, preventing rescuers from reaching their location from the ground or by helicopter.

Two other Korean climbers were successfully rescued on Sunday morning at an altitude of 4100m after rescuers deployed a highly complex operation.

French authorities have opened an investigation.