The remains of a man who is believed to have died in an accident on a glacier 22 years ago have been found high in the Austrian Alps.

Police said the discovery was made by a mountain guide on the Schlatenkees glacier in the Hohe Tauern National Park in eastern Tyrol province, close to the Italian border.

The remains were found at an altitude of about 2,900m (9,515ft) and had clearly been there for some time, police added.

The guide alerted police in the Austrian town of Lienz before rescuers recovered the remains with the help of a helicopter.

A few metres below the remains, rescuers also found a backpack containing cash, a bank card and a driving licence.

Police said the remains appear to be those of an Austrian man who was aged 37 at the time of the accident and is believed to have died in 2001.

The man also had cross-country skiing equipment.

A DNA comparison is being carried out to confirm the man’s identity.

The Schlatenkees glacier was the scene of one such previous find.

Bones found there in 2011 were believed to be those of a local man who had been missing since 1957.

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As glaciers increasingly melt and recede due to global warming, there has been an increase in the discoveries of the remains of hikers, skiers and other people who went missing decades ago.

In July, the remains of a German man who went missing while climbing near Switzerland’s iconic Matterhorn mountain 37 years ago were recovered.

DNA tests confirmed the remains belonged to a 38-year-old, who went missing in September 1986.