Klaus Drexel from the Vorarlberg Mountain Rescue Service.
©Canva; VOL.AT
The avalanche danger in western Austria remained delicate at higher altitudes even on Stefanitag.
Both in the east of Vorarlberg and in the west of Tyrol there was a significant avalanche danger of level three above 2,300 meters above sea level – this is the avalanche warning level at which most avalanche accidents occur. Klaus Drexel from the Vorarlberg Mountain Rescue appealed to winter sports enthusiasts to always be aware of the dangers in nature.
“Nature knows no borders”
Away from the secured pistes, individual winter sports enthusiasts have already been able to trigger avalanches. “Great caution and restraint are necessary,” warned the Tyrolean avalanche warning service. In an interview with the APA, Drexel pointed out that avalanche accidents can happen even with comparatively little snow – as the avalanche in Lech/Zürs on Sunday proved. “Nature knows no boundaries,” says the mountain rescuer. Even if you are on a ski slope, you are still moving in alpine terrain.
Activate tools
If a winter sports enthusiast is directly involved in an avalanche, it is important to activate the aids you have with you immediately. “The avalanche airbag, the activated avalanche transceiver (LVS) that you wear on your body,” Drexel gave examples. If you get caught in the snow, you are only a passenger later on. “Aids don’t protect, I need them to survive,” emphasized the mountain rescuer.
“After a quarter of an hour, chances of survival decrease drastically”
If an avalanche is experienced as an observer, one must immediately get an idea of how many people are affected and “where they disappear”. Subsequently, an emergency call is to be made in order to immediately begin with the rescue of comrades. “After a quarter of an hour, the chances of survival decrease drastically,” Drexel pointed out urgently to the time component. The most important minutes passed before the organized rescue team arrived at the scene of the accident.
Also report avalanches without buried people
It is also extremely important to report observed avalanches without people being buried. This is the only way for the emergency services to be able to adequately assess the situation. On Sunday in Lech/Zürs it was unclear for hours how many people were being searched for – fortunately nobody was buried under the masses of snow. Not even knowing the approximate number of those wanted was “a hair-raising situation” for the emergency services, said Drexel.
