Eleven people died in avalanches in the Alps at the weekend. There was also a significant avalanche danger in Bavaria, and a 61-year-old ski tourer died in the Berchtesgaden Alps. An accident in Lenggries, on the other hand, ended lightly.
Ramsau – The two ski tourers from Austria were just on a steep slope when a huge avalanche released above them. The men were swept away by the masses of snow that thundered down the Steintalhörndl in the Berchtesgadener Land. A local ski tourer who had observed the accident made an emergency call and came to the rescue. First he found the younger of the two victims. The 41-year-old was only partially buried and responsive. He was flown to a clinic. His 61-year-old companion, on the other hand, was completely buried by the avalanche.* Thanks to his search device, the first responder was able to locate the man at a depth of one meter. When the Ramsau mountain rescue service and the avalanche dog squadron arrived, he had already dug up the victim’s head. But despite the quick help, it was too late. The man had died.
Number of avalanche deaths increases: warning of “considerable danger” in Bavaria
Eleven avalanche deaths in the Alps, that is the sad balance sheet of this weekend, where there was fantastic winter weather, but also dangerous snow conditions. For days, the avalanche warning services in Bavaria and Austria had warned against leaving the groomed slopes. In the main Alpine ridge, the warning level was 3 out of 5, i.e. significant avalanche danger. “Statistically, two-thirds of avalanche accidents happen at alert level 3,” says Berchtesgaden police mountain guide Jörg Fegg.
Eight people died on Friday. In the Ischgl ski area, a mountain guide was off the slopes with five skiers from Sweden when they were surprised by an avalanche. A 42-year-old was able to make an emergency call. He was the only one of the group to survive.
Another accident happened on Friday at the Knödelkopf in Vorarlberg. Four ski tourers were hit by an avalanche, a 43-year-old died. On the night of Saturday, rescuers recovered the bodies of a couple in the Tyrolean Wildschönau. The 61-year-old woman and the 60-year-old man were buried by an avalanche during a ski tour. Relatives had alerted the rescuers after the couple had not returned. On Saturday, a group of local ski tourers had an accident in the Schmirrn. A 58-year-old died. And in Switzerland, a 68-year-old Italian died when two out of four tourers were swept away by an avalanche above Reckingen in the canton of Valais on Saturday.
Head of the avalanche warning service: “Makes me sad, but I’m also shocked and angry”
Lucky in misfortune had a tourer near Lenggries (Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen) on Saturday, who triggered an avalanche on the Prinzkopf. * His companions were able to dig out the buried person. He wasn’t hurt.
The head of the Tyrolean avalanche warning service, Rudi Mair, was frustrated by the numerous incidents: “It makes me sad, but I’m also shocked and angry that all the warnings are useless.”
For Sunday, the Bavarian avalanche warning service reported level 2 for the Bavarian Alps over 1600 meters and therefore only moderate avalanche danger. But even with warning level 2, caution is advised, warns police mountain guide Fegg. “Moderate is not to be underestimated.” Fegg knows what he is talking about. It’s been almost two weeks since a 39-year-old ski tourer died in an avalanche. Warning level 2 also applied on this day.
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