It was a dramatic weekend in the Alps. A lot of avalanches came down and five persons died in the French and Italian Alps. Our thoughts are with families and friends of the victims. A lot of avalanches came down in other regions in the Alps as well, but fortunately the people involved were ‘only’ injured.
Father and daughter (11) killed by an avalanche in Val d’Isère
A 44-year old father and his 11-year old daughter died in avalanche on Sunday. The father and daughter from the region of Paris were skiing on a closed slope. (source). It all happened on the Combe du Géant on the Pisaillas glacier, one of the two glaciers in the ski area of Tignes - Val d’Isère. The slope was closed because of the avalanche risk.
Tour skier dies due to the collapse of a corniche
A 29-year old tour skier died due to the collapse of a corniche close to the resort of La Clusaz in France. The accident occurred at the summit of the 2483 meter high L’Etale, probably he had climbed to the summit from La Giettaz-en-Aravis. The snow took him over some rocks and covered him completely. Mountain rescue attempted to resuscitate him, but unfortunately this wasn’t successful. (Source)
Several avalanches in Wallis
Two people were hit by an avalanche in the Finhaut region in the French-speaking part of Lower Valais in the late afternoon. They could be brought to the nearest hospital after a successful rescue. (Source). The canton police of Wallis mentioned a total of three avalanches with four persons injures in their report yesterday.
Two members of mountain rescue died in Lombardy
Two members of mountain rescue died in an avalanche in northern Lombardy on Friday afternoon. The avalanche came down near the 2.177 m high Grignetta, north of Milan near Lake Como. It took hours to recover the victims (see video above), a third person in the group was not buried and was able to descend into the valley. (Source)
Companion rescue and luck in Südtirol and Hohentauern
Bei einer Skitour in Triebental (Nähe Hohentauern) blieb ein Ehepaar unverletzt, nachdem sich eine Lawine in einer Rinne löste. Die Frau konnte ihren Airbag auslösen und hatte großes Glück nur weniger Meter mitgerissen zu werden und lediglich vom Schneestaub bedeckt zu werden. (Quelle). During a ski tour in Triebental (near Hohentauern) a couple was lucky after an avalanche came down in a couloir. The woman was able to release her airbag and was very lucky to be dragged down only a few meters. (Source)