A severe winter storm in the Alps causes chaos on many roads. Two mountain hikers die and there is little hope for one missing person.
Innsbruck/Bolzano – While it rained incessantly in the lower areas of eastern Austria, Poland and the Czech Republic, up to a meter of snow fell in the high altitudes of the Alps above 800 to 1200 meters. Despite the forecast snowfall, many mountain tourists were surprised by the extraordinarily early onset of winter.
It had snowed heavily, especially in the Obertauern area in Salzburger Land. The winter sports resort is located at an altitude of 1,740 meters. The wind blew the snow into bizarre sculptures. Despite urgent warnings from the Salzburg mountain rescue service, a ski tourer (54) from Slovenia wanted to take advantage of the early winter conditions and set off on a tour in the Radstädter Tauern on Saturday. Trips to the high mountains were warned against: “We strongly advise against ski tours and hikes in snowy high mountains,” said the regional head of the Salzburg mountain rescue service, Balthasar Laireiter, on Saturday (14 September).
Tourist sets off on ski tour in Austria despite warning and disappears in snowstorm
The Slovenian went into the snowstorm and disappeared. Friends alerted the police when he stopped answering his cell phone. “They said he was experienced and knew the area and had been on a ski tour in open terrain,” Christian Binggl, head of operations and dog handler of the mountain rescue service in Obertauern, told the oRfOn Sunday morning, a desperate search was launched for him. The emergency services did not know where he had gone, so 42 mountain rescuers were sent out to look for him.
“The conditions were very bad, a lot of fresh snow was blown away by the wind and visibility was poor, with a high risk of avalanches,” it continued. In the area of the Seekareck, at 1,987 meters above sea level, mountain rescuers were able to locate the signal of an avalanche transceiver. The ski hiker was dug out of a large cornice at a depth of around two meters. A doctor could only confirm his death.
Hardly any hope left: Hiker from Bavaria buried by avalanche in Tyrol – woman freezes to death in the Dolomites
In the Karwendel mountains on the border between Bavaria and Tyrol, a hiker from the Coburg region (Bavaria) was buried by an avalanche on Saturday. According to the police, there is little hope for him. It is “99 percent a rescue operation,” a police officer told IPPEN.MEDIAWhen it comes to the living, the police speak of “rescue” and when it comes to the dead, they speak of “recovery”. In South Tyrol, a couple from Canada were caught in a snowstorm near the Seiser Alm at an altitude of over 2000 metres on Friday. The woman (57) froze to death, the man (56) survived with severe hypothermia and was brought to the valley on Saturday.
A 28-year-old and her partner (29) from Düsseldorf, who wanted to walk from the mountain station of the Gerlossteinbahn towards the summit on Friday afternoon, were lucky. Halfway there, the two Rhinelanders were surprised by the large amounts of fresh snow, but they continued their tour and reached the summit at around 1:45 p.m.
The couple then decided to descend via the Heimjöchl. They sought shelter in a nearby, dilapidated hut. According to the police, they only had “light clothing and equipment” with them. They made an emergency call and were brought safely through the deep snow to the valley by the Zell am Ziller mountain rescue team, suffering from mild hypothermia.
Alpine passes in Austria closed due to snow drifts and avalanche danger
The onset of winter is also affecting traffic: many Alpine passes such as the Grossglockner High Alpine Road or the Timmelsjoch have been closed. The opening of many mountain roads was delayed this year due to the heavy snowfall in spring, so much so that even the Giro d’Italia had to be postponed. On some higher roads, snow chains were temporarily required on Saturday, for example on the Arlberg Road (B197), the Defereggen Valley Road (L25), the Lechtal Road (B198) and the Silvretta High Alpine Road. The Alpine roads are already suffering from many construction sites.
The Tauernbahn, which trains use from Salzburg to Villach, was temporarily closed due to trees falling under the weight of snow. The ÖBB night train, the Nightjet, also runs here to Rome. The forecast for the coming week is for cold and windy weather, with snow showers. Then there will be thaws up to the summits and sunshine.
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