Rescue teams will assess if they can resume the hunt for two young climbers on Ben Nevis on Thursday after treacherous conditions hampered efforts.

Rachel Slater, 24, and Tim Newton, 27, failed to return from an outing on Britain's highest peak at the weekend.

Heavy snow, fog and high winds prevented teams from carrying out detailed searches on Wednesday and an avalanche elsewhere saw a rescue helicopter diverted from the hunt.

Two men were airlifted from the Creag Meagaidh area of north Lochaber and one of the climbers later died in hospital, while the other remains in a serious condition.

It is believed experienced climbers Ms Slater and Mr Newton, from Bradford in West Yorkshire, had been camping behind the Charles Inglis Clark memorial hut on the north side of Ben Nevis.

Ms Slater's parents are understood to have travelled to Scotland on Wednesday night to meet rescuers and discuss the search operation.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: "Mountain rescue will assess the weather in daylight to see if they can carry on."

Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team said on Wednesday night: "Sadly conditions on Ben Nevis are preventing us from going out to look for Rachel and Tim.

"We managed to get (helicopter) R951 as a small window in the weather allowed an aerial search which unfortunately did not find anything."

Mr Newton was a member of Hinckley Mountaineering Club in Leicestershire before moving to university.

Club president David Gair said he has a wealth of experience garnered in the Himalayas, the Alps and in Scotland.