Next avalanche disaster in the Alps: at least one dead - five people buried

Created: 2022-02-06 06:12

By: Martina Lippl, Felix Durach

Due to the weather conditions, there were several avalanches in Austria.

The number of avalanche deaths continues to rise.

The news ticker.

• In Austria, the number of avalanche deaths has increased.

• After various avalanches on Friday (February 4th), eight avalanche deaths have been reported.

• At least one person died on Saturday after a new avalanche (see update from February 5, 1:58 p.m.).

• This news ticker is updated regularly.

Update from February 5, 1:58 p.m .:

Eight people died on Friday after avalanches in Austria.

Another accident happened on Saturday in Tyrol.

According to police information, at least one person died in Schmirn below the Gammerspitze.

The search for a person is currently ongoing.

A total of five winter sports enthusiasts were buried, three of them could have been recovered alive.

The police were initially unable to provide any further information about the identities of the victims or about the course of the accident.

Avalanche accidents in Austria: eight dead on Friday alone

Update from February 5, 10:08 a.m

.: After heavy snowfall in Austria, the authorities had expressly warned of avalanches and snow slabs.

Apparently, state-certified mountain and snowboard guides couldn't resist the fresh snow.

Tourers with avalanche equipment also thought they were safe.

A deadly mistake for some.

A major search ended in the Wildschönau on Saturday night – a couple could only be rescued dead from snow masses

.

After dozens of reported avalanches in Austria, the number of avalanche deaths rose to eight.

Vorarlberg: rescuers fight for more than 20 minutes for the life of a 43-year-old

On the Arlberg in the Albona ski area in Klösterle, an experienced skier (43) was completely buried by a slab of snow at around 3:50 p.m. despite an avalanche airbag.

His three companions, including a state-certified snowboard guide, according to the police, were able to locate the 43-year-old with a probe at a depth of two meters.

"After about 10 minutes of digging, they came across the buried person and the first rescue workers came to the avalanche by helicopter," says the police report.

"Unfortunately, despite further resuscitation attempts, the emergency doctor could only determine the death of the 43-year-old skier."

Four Swedes among the avalanche deaths in Austria

Four Swedish tourers between the ages of 43 and 47 and a local mountain guide (42) died on Friday in Tyrol in the border area with Switzerland in the Ischgl / Samnaun ski area.

The group was off-piste when a 400-meter-wide avalanche released overhead.

The mountain and ski guide and four men were swept up to 350 meters away by the avalanche and completely buried.

A Swede (43) was only partially buried and was able to use his cell phone to inform a friend in Sweden about the avalanche accident.

At around 1:04 p.m., the police in Austria were informed of the avalanche, but without an exact location.

At 1:22 p.m., helicopter rescuers discovered a fresh avalanche cone in the search area.

Update from February 5, 8:57 a.m

.: After the avalanche accident with five dead in Tyrol in Spiess (Landeck district), a couple died on Friday in the Wildschönau on a ski tour.

The two had not returned in the evening, the Austrian police announced on Saturday.

Relatives alerted the police around 9:40 p.m.

A night search operation then began.

The two could only be recovered dead.

Two more avalanche deaths in Tyrol - Wildschönau

The 61-year-old woman and the 60-year-old man went on a ski tour from the Schönangeralm in the Wildschönau to the Breitegg peak (1868 meters) on Friday afternoon.

The two reached the summit at around 3.30 p.m. and informed a contact person.

That was the last contact.

When the two had not returned in the evening and were also unavailable by phone, relatives made an emergency call.

Alpine police, mountain rescue and the Auffach fire brigade immediately started the search operation.

Drama in Tyrol: Missing couple discovered under avalanche

The forces were supported by three search dogs from the mountain rescue service, the drone from the fire brigade and the police helicopter from Salzburg (Libelle FLIR Salzburg), which is equipped with a thermal imaging camera.

From the helicopter, a slab avalanche could be seen south of the Breitegg peak.

Search parties then made their way to that area.

The two tourers were located under the masses of snow at 12:40 a.m. using avalanche transceivers (LVS).

However, they could only be recovered dead.

Tirol Austria: Seven avalanche deaths in one day

With the avalanche in the Wildschönau and the accident on the Swiss border, a total of seven people lost their lives in Tyrol on Friday.

The control center in Tyrol received numerous reports of avalanches on Friday.

Many of these went smoothly.

Avalanche in Fieberbrunn – 24-year-old seriously injured despite avalanche airbag

In Fieberbrunn, a 24-year-old skier was hit by an avalanche in the Hörndlinger Graben area. The 24-year-old was completely buried. According to the police, the triggered avalanche airbag was still visible on the surface. His companions were able to quickly rescue the buried person. However, the 24-year-old was seriously injured and transported by helicopter to the Zell am See hospital and from there to the Salzburg state hospital. The avalanche at Hörndlinger Graben was triggered at an altitude of 1,800 meters. It was 700 meters long and about 70 meters wide. Alpine police, the police helicopter from Salzburg (Libelle FLIR Salzburg), 20 mountain rescuers, three avalanche search dogs and the Alpin Heli 6 and Heli 1 were involved in the operation.

Drama in Austria: seven avalanche deaths in one day in Tyrol.

The alpine police (photo) are on duty alongside the mountain rescue services of the districts.

© Alpine Police Austria/BMI

Five dead after an avalanche: the expert reacted with incomprehension – "shocked and angry"

Update from February 4, 9:15 p.m .:

After the avalanche accident with five fatalities on Friday, the head of the Tyrolean avalanche warning service, Rudi Mair, reacted with incomprehension to the behavior of winter sports enthusiasts.

"It makes me sad, but I'm also shocked and angry that all the warnings are useless," Mair told the German Press Agency.

The authority had also pointed out the critical conditions that had arisen as a result of the fresh snow for days.

Ski touring and off-piste descents currently require a lot of experience in assessing the avalanche danger.

According to official information, Friday was the day with the most avalanches in winter.

Over 60 slabs of snow had come loose nationwide.

The avalanche warning service had proclaimed avalanche warning level three out of five for all of Tyrol and warned of "considerable" danger.

Tyrol: avalanche on Friday – the number of fatalities rises to five

Update from February 4, 5:30 p.m .:

The person who was still missing after the avalanche in the Austrian state of Tyrol on Friday could only be rescued dead from the snow masses by the mountain rescue team.

This increases the number of fatalities in the accident near the Swiss border to five, as the local police confirmed in the afternoon.

Another person was flown to a Swiss hospital with injuries.

Initially, the rescue workers had only confirmed four fatalities, but suspected another person under the avalanche.

Avalanche in Tyrol: Four fatalities - another person is missing

An aerial view of the Tyrol police shows the spot where the avalanche went off on Friday.

© Police Tyrol / AFP

First report from February 4th:

Innsbruck – An avalanche accident with several fatalities occurred in the Austrian state of Tyrol on Friday morning.

According to the local emergency services, a slab of snow broke in the area of ​​the municipality of Spiss on the border between Austria* and Switzerland* and caused an avalanche in the area of ​​the Flimspitze (2,929 m).

Avalanche in Tyrol: Four people recovered dead - mountain rescue continues to work

Several people who were in the area at the time of the descent were hit by the avalanche and buried under the masses of snow.

According to information from the police, four people have only been able to be rescued dead from the avalanche.

Another person was still missing as of Friday afternoon.

No statements could be made as of Friday afternoon about the origin and identity of the victims.

According to the police, rescue workers are still in the area.

The snow conditions and temperatures well above freezing caused several avalanches in Tyrol.

13 slabs of snow came loose on Friday alone.

For the federal state in western Austria, avalanche warning level three (considerable danger) of five possible levels applied on Friday.

Austria: avalanche in the ski area – six people saved from the snow masses

An avalanche also hit a ski slope in the popular Sölden ski area, burying several winter sports enthusiasts.

According to information from the

, the rescue workers have so far been able to rescue six people alive.

According to the current state of knowledge, it is not clear whether other people were in the area.