An avalanche killed three Czech skiers in central Austria, police said, bringing the total number of people killed by avalanches in the Austrian Alps on Saturday to eight.
An avalanche swept away three of the seven members of a Czech ski touring group in the Murtal region of Styria, completely burying them, police said in a statement. Rescue services managed to locate and recover the victims, but “despite all efforts,” the three were found dead, according to authorities.
Earlier the same day, in the Pongau region near Salzburg, an avalanche swept seven skiers off the slope, killing four and injuring a fifth, Austria’s public broadcaster ORF reported.
In the same area, a female skier and her husband were buried by heavy snow when another avalanche struck. Rescue services, alerted by the husband, were unable to revive her.
“Despite clear and repeated warnings, we experienced several avalanches today, unfortunately with fatal consequences,” said Gerhard Kremser, head of emergency services in the Pongau mountains.
“This tragedy painfully demonstrates the seriousness of the current avalanche situation,” he stressed.
Earlier this week, on Tuesday, a 13-year-old boy, also from the Czech Republic, was killed in an avalanche in Bad Gastein in the Austrian Alps while skiing off-piste with another child at the Sportgastein ski resort.
Last Sunday, a 58-year-old skier was killed in an avalanche in Werberg, Tyrol (western Austria). That same weekend, six people died after being buried by avalanches at ski resorts in the French Alps.
Meanwhile, in the Swiss Alps, a German skier was killed in an avalanche and four others were injured.
