Briton dies near Argentine summit

Mount Aconcagua is the highest peak in The Americas

A British man has died just steps from the summit of Mount Aconcagua in the Argentine Andes after suffering a heart attack, the Foreign Office has said.

Michael Freeman, 42, who died on Friday, is the fourth climber to have died in a week on the mountain.

He had been approaching the 22,000-feet (6,700-metre) peak of the mountain, which is the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere, officials said.

Mr Freeman's family have been told, but no further details have been released.

About 4,600 people tried to reach Aconcagua's summit during the 2007-2008 climbing season.

Local guides said two to three people usually die scaling the mountain every year.

An Italian climber and an Argentine guide died earlier this week and a German man also died on 3 January.