A 21-year-old German from Munich died in an avalanche in South Tyrol. According to the Italian mountain rescue service, the avalanche occurred near the municipality of Ratschings, near the Austrian border. A group of German tourers were buried in snow at an altitude of around 2,100 meters.
The rescue workers managed to pull a woman and another man out of the snow and resuscitate them. However, they had to be taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries. Any help came too late for the Munich resident.
It had snowed heavily in the Italian Alps in the past few days. The fresh snow – up to half a meter – also increased the risk of avalanches. The accident probably occurred early on Wednesday afternoon in the Wumblsalm area.
It took some time until the rescuers were on site. Their work was then made easier by the fact that those buried wore avalanche search devices. The two critically injured people were flown to a hospital by helicopter. Around 30 helpers were involved in the rescue work.
The tourers who were off the regular pistes were probably aiming for the Schlotterjoch (2373 meters) or the Glaitner Hochjoch (2389 meters). According to the mountain rescue service, all victims are between the ages of 20 and 30. According to a spokesman, they come from different German cities.