In the Ötscher area in Lower Austria, an avalanche claimed one fatality on Sunday afternoon. According to the police, a 32-year-old snowboarder from the St. Pölten district was in a group of six outdoors and was swept away and buried by a slab of snow about 250 meters wide for about 300 meters. Resuscitation measures carried out were unsuccessful.
The group of snowboarders and skiers equipped with avalanche rescue equipment stayed in Lackenhof in the Scheibbs district on Sunday. The lifts were used for ascents, but when there was fresh snow, people mostly went down the valley outside of the marked pistes. Shortly before 11.30 a.m., at the suggestion of the 32-year-old, the recreational athletes decided to ski down from the Kleiner Ötscher mountain station to the east of the marked piste into the so-called Little Green Hole.
The man from the district of St. Pölten was the first to go down the approximately 40 degree steep slope on his snowboard while the other group members were still waiting. Shortly after the entrance, according to the state police, the slab of snow broke. The 32-year-old’s avalanche airbag opened, but did not prevent the Lower Austrian from being buried up to 75 centimeters deep.
The companions of the casualty alerted the mountain rescue service, but they were initially unable to locate the victim using an avalanche transceiver. The 32-year-old was only discovered and freed by the requested helpers. 41 members of the mountain rescue service, five alpine police officers and three officers from the Gaming Police Inspectorate (Scheibbs district) were deployed.
For the Ötscher area, there was avalanche warning level 4 above the tree line on Sunday. The risk was therefore assessed as high there.
As was also announced on Sunday, a 33-year-old was carried away by an avalanche about 120 meters and buried on Saturday afternoon in the Türnitz Alps. According to the police, the man, who also came from the St. Pölten district, was located within a few minutes by companions using a search device. He remained unharmed and after the liberation made his way down into the valley himself – even before the alarmed helpers were on the spot.
A relaxation of the avalanche situation is meanwhile not in the immediate sight. On Monday, in the Ybbstal Alps, the Gippel-Göller area and for the Rax-Schneeberg group above the tree line, level 4 on the five-part scale continues to apply, so the danger is rated as high according to the warning service. Below that, the risk – as in the entire Türnitz Alps – is rated as significant (level 3).
“Due to the combination of the fresh snow that has fallen since Thursday and the wind, some mighty loads have formed,” it was emphasized. A slab of snow is now “probable due to the small additional load of a single tourer”.
Source: Nachrichten
