Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

SKIING

LATEST: US teenager among three killed in Swiss avalanche

One of the three people killed by an avalanche at the luxury Swiss ski resort of Zermatt was a 15-year-old boy from the United States, police said Tuesday.

Published: 2 April 2024 08:29 CEST
Updated: 2 April 2024 14:07 CEST
LATEST: US teenager among three killed in Swiss avalanche
Avalanche has claimed the lives of skiers. Image by Markus Spiske from Pixabay

The two others killed in Monday’s avalanche were “a man and a woman who are still being identified”, the Wallis regional police said in a statement.

“Regarding the female victim, we so far have no information allowing us to identify her.”

The large avalanche happened in an out-of-bounds area at Zermatt in southern Switzerland shortly after 2:00 pm (1200 GMT), and an extensive search
was immediately carried out despite bad weather.

Of the four people pulled out of the snow, only one was still alive, a 20-year-old Swiss man who was seriously injured and airlifted to hospital.

The authorities had warned of a significant avalanche risk in the Alpine regions of southern Switzerland in recent days because of heavy snowfall and
high winds.

Around 17 people have lost their lives in avalanches in Switzerland since October 1 last year, according to statistics from the WSL Institute for Snow
and Avalanche Research.

A total of 147 avalanche-related accidents have occurred during the period, involving 197 people.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

HIKING

Swiss Alps deaths involving foreigners reach a ten-year high

The number of foreigners involved in fatal incidents in the Swiss Alps reached a ten year high in 2023, a new report from the Swiss Alpine Club reveals. 

Published: 28 March 2024 17:27 CET
Swiss Alps deaths involving foreigners reach a ten-year high

According to the report, 114 people died in accidents in Switzerland’s mountains over the previous year, with 71 of them foreigners either visiting or living in Switzerland. 

Germans constituted the largest group with fifteen fatalities, followed by Italians with twelve fatalities and the Dutch with six. 

Three Britons and two Americans were also killed in mountaineering accidents. 

Over three-quarters of those who died in mountaineering accidents were men – eighty-two, as opposed to thirty-two women.

Read More: Why have so many climbers and hikers died in the Swiss mountains this year?

Those between the ages of forty-one and seventy were most represented in the statistics, with fifty-one incidents involving a fatality. 

Individuals between twenty and forty comprised the second largest group, with forty-five fatalities. 

Four individuals between the ages of ten and twenty also died in mountaineering incidents in 2023. 

Hiking is the most dangerous activity

Most of the fatal incidents involved hiking or high-altitude trekking – that is to say, requiring oxygen –  with exhaustion or the inability to continue, resulting in death before rescuers could attend. 

Over a third of all fatalities occurred in the canton of Valais, with forty-five incidents. Bern followed, with fifteen incidents and Grisons with fourteen.

Valais’ relatively larger size, position along the French and Italian Alps, and over eight thousand kilometres of hiking trails could help explain the high number of fatalities as recorded in the report. 

Similarly, the size of Bern and Grisons and the popular alpine resorts found there could explain their statistical significance. 

Read More: How to keep safe and avoid problems when hiking in the Swiss Alps

Warmer weather to blame

A press release accompanying the article points to unseasonably warmer weather as one contributing factor: “The beautiful weather attracted many mountain sports enthusiasts to the mountains. 

“This is reflected in the number of mountain emergencies and fatal accidents, which have increased in the summer months.”

Indeed, July and August were the most dangerous months for those enjoying mountain sports, with twenty-one and twenty deaths, respectively. 

Keeping the mountains safe

The Swiss Alpine Club, founded in 1863, has kept records of mountain incidents since its inception and publishes a report yearly to promote responsible and safe use of Switzerland’s alpine environments. 

The annual report breaks down the location, cause and background of those involved in incidents and identifies whether a successful rescue was carried out. 

Read More: EXPLAINED: 8 rules nature lovers should follow in the Swiss countryside

It draws upon the operational data held by mountain rescue organisations REGA, the Swiss Alpine Rescue ARS, the Cantonal Valais Rescue Organization KWRO, Air-Glaciers Lauterbrunnen and other institutions working across the country.

The Swiss Alpine Club’s 111 sections also maintain huts and trails throughout the country’s twenty-six cantons, promote mountain sports, and teach basic outdoor safety and first aid skills.

SHOW COMMENTS