Santiago, Dec 5 (IANS): The bodies of the three Argentine climbers, who disappeared last week in the Marmolejo mountain in the Chilean Andes, have been located by a specialized team of the Chilean law enforcement gendarmerie Carabineros.

In a press statement, the police said a multidisciplinary high mountain team of the Carabineros Special Police Operations Group deployed on Marmolejo located the bodies of the three mountaineers, Xinhua news agency reported.

The bodies were spotted on Monday morning in the snow by a helicopter searching at an altitude of 18,550 feet (5,654 meters).

Marmolejo, a 6,108-meter stratovolcano located on the border between Chile and Argentina, is the southernmost 6,000-meter-plus peak in the world.

According to the Carabineros, the climbers began an expedition to the Marmolejo summit on November 22, but during the descent, the group lost communication. Search efforts began when Chilean police were notified the expedition failed to return as scheduled the next day.

Rescue teams are now awaiting better weather conditions to remove the bodies from the mountain.