As of: March 15, 2024, 7:14 p.m
By: Richard Strobl
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An avalanche hit a ski slope in northern Italy.
A major search operation followed.
Later, a second slab of snow came loose and buried four rescuers.
Update from March 12th, 7:10 a.m
.: A skier probably triggered the avalanche in Schnals and thus a large-scale mountain rescue operation.
Eyewitnesses observed how a variant rider took the lift up and then climbed over the ridge to the Grawand peak.
He is said to have triggered the avalanche while skiing down the Grawand, the Italian broadcaster
Rai
reports .
The skier is now being searched for.
There was a high risk of avalanches in the ski area on Monday.
Targeted explosions had already taken place in the morning.
However, this did not trigger an avalanche.
Avalanche hits ski slope in South Tyrol: 100 emergency services are looking for possible victims
On Monday afternoon around 4 p.m. an avalanche suddenly hit the valley run piste.
100 mountain rescue teams searched for buried victims.
Helicopters are also supporting the search operation.
The teams took the avalanche cone, which was about 40 meters wide.
Rescuers searched the snow for possible avalanche victims until the evening.
Then a slab of snow came loose about 100 meters below and buried four men
(see update from March 11, 9:36 p.m.)
.
They were able to be freed by their colleagues.
A small avalanche in the Italian Alps.
(Symbolic image) © IMAGO / Panthermedia
Update from March 11th, 9:36 p.m.:
The avalanche that hit a ski slope in South Tyrol apparently did not buried any skiers.
However, a second avalanche broke out in the evening around 7 p.m. - shortly after the search operation ended.
This involved 100 people with search dogs and three helicopters.
According to
Rai News,
the second avalanche buried four rescuers who were traveling down the valley.
However, they were able to be freed shortly afterwards by the colleagues present.
South Tyrol avalanche hits ski slope: Serious allegations against ski group
First report from March 11th:
Bolzano – Italy is currently being hit by extreme weather conditions.
Mass amounts of rain and snow caused debris and avalanches.
Now the next slab of snow has come loose and apparently hit the valley slope of a ski resort.
Shortly after 3 p.m. on Monday afternoon, an avalanche broke out in South Tyrol.
According to reports from
Rai News
and the
Ansa
news agency, the larger snow slab came off above the valley run in the Schnals ski area.
It continues to say that it hit the ski slope at the level of the ice lake next to the Grawand lift.
The alarm was sounded from Kurzras.
Avalanche in northern Italy: apparently hit a ski slope
Immediately after the report, rescue and search teams made their way to the site.
According to the report, the two emergency medical helicopters Pelikan 1 and 2 as well as the financial police helicopter are in use in Schnalstal.
All three flew search parties to the avalanche.
According to the Schnals mountain rescue service, all mountain rescue services in the area as well as several units of the volunteer fire department are in action.
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It is currently unclear whether the snow slab hit anyone.
According to initial information, no one was injured.
Rai
reports, citing eyewitnesses, that some skiers took the Grawand lift up the mountain and then climbed over the ridge to the Grawand peak.
They are said to have triggered the avalanche while descending on skis.
According to the report, two avalanches also occurred in Sulden on Monday.
Nobody was injured.
A skier is under investigation because he may have triggered one of the avalanches.
Northern Italy is currently drowning in snow.
It's been snowing almost non-stop in the Italian Alps for days.
Several avalanches have already occurred.
Among other things, a snow slab hit a street gallery near Merano.
The Aosta Valley is also affected by a high risk of avalanches.
Here, avalanches partially buried access roads and temporarily isolated thousands of people from the outside world.
(rist)