This is the third fatal accident in a week in the Alps, proof that the snowpack is currently very unstable. A 55-year-old skier died on Saturday in an avalanche in Vars, in the Hautes-Alpes. The 50-year-old was caught in a casting in the afternoon, while he was off-piste, under the peak of Chabrières, a place accessible by the ski lifts of the station, indicated the CRS Hautes-Alpes.
Call for caution
He was found dead by paramedics, as reported The Liberated Dauphine. This is the third death in an avalanche in a week in the Alps, all sectors combined, said the Hautes-Alpes company. The two other fatal avalanches took place on Monday in Enchastrayes (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence) and Wednesday at Pic Blanc du Galibier (Savoie).
“We call on skiers to be very careful, the snowpack is currently conducive to avalanches”, warn the rescuers. Météo France also reported on Saturday “high risk of triggering an avalanche by skiers” and recommended “the greatest caution (…) for the practice of mountain activities off marked and open slopes” on the Hautes- Alps, Ubaye and Oisans.