A SANDBACH man is to help a mountaineer who lost part of his legs in a horrific accident to scale 13,000ft to raise money for his ill granddaughter.

Alwyne Atkinson and four other climbers are to scale The Eiger in Switzerland to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis which his two-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter Alice Pepper suffers from.

The task is tough enough in itself but it is made even more difficult as one of the climbers, Steve Ball, is seriously handicapped after a life-threatening accident while climbing in Alaska.

Experienced mountaineer Steve, aged 46, was climbing Mount McKinley four years ago when he fell for over half a mile after being caught in an avalanche when he went looking for help after a fellow climber was taken ill.

Steve, from Tittensor, was left stranded for 28 hours in extreme conditions of minus 50C and broke both legs, suffering severe frostbite in his feet, hands and face.

His injuries resulted in him losing his left leg below the knee, part of his right foot, all his fingers, both thumbs and part of his nose.

But the group is determined to help Steve get to the summit to make sure young Alice, who attends Kids Corner Nursery in Sandbach, is helped by the money they raise for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

Alwyne said: "Cystic Fibrosis is the UK's most common life-threatening inherited disease, which unfortunately Alice has.

"It affects vital organs, especially the lungs and pancreas by clogging them up with thick, sticky mucus.

"The Trust is the only national charity in the UK funding research aimed at understanding, treating and curing Cystic Fibrosis and at present there is no cure."

The climb is taking place over the August bank holiday weekend and anyone wanting to make a donation should contact Alwyne on 07973 807701.