As of: March 7, 2024, 4:55 a.m
By: Moritz Bletzinger
Comments
Press
Split
Tragedy in Pfelders (South Tyrol): It was only in the evening that rescue workers found the 16-year-old under the snow.
© Bergrettung Pfelders
A slab of snow hit him 50 to 60 meters below the mountain station.
Markus (16) died in an avalanche accident in South Tyrol.
A community is in mourning.
Platt – He was sporty, popular and 16 years young.
Now Markus R. is dead. A slab of snow buried the teenager on Sunday (March 6th), and any rescue came too late.
The community of Platt in South Tyrol is in mourning.
Rescue came too late: Boy (16) from South Tyrol dies in an avalanche next to the slope
The avalanche accident occurred on the Karjochbahn in Pfelders.
Markus was outside the piste 50 to 60 meters below the mountain station when the masses of snow hit him.
He remained undetected for hours,
reports
stol.it.
And by the time help arrived, it was already too late.
A ski stuck out of the snow, the mountain rescue team said.
A funeral service will take place in the South Tyrolean community on Thursday (March 7th).
A funeral procession will say goodbye to Markus.
“His great passion was skiing,” says father Roland about his son.
This passion became the 16-year-old's downfall.
In winter he was on skis, in summer he was in the mountains on his e-bike, and he had lots of friends.
Father Roland describes Markus as “hardworking and thrifty”.
Great danger of avalanches in the Alps: Extreme weather causes accidents
There is currently a high risk of avalanches in the Italian Alps, and the extreme weather has caused several deaths.
And in the meantime the next snowstorm is rolling towards southern Germany, Austria and northern Italy.
At the end of February, a German holidaymaker had a fatal accident in South Tyrol.
An avalanche swept away the ski touring group around him, two other people were seriously injured and are in the Bolzano hospital.
Around 30 helpers were involved in the rescue operation.
(moe)