Eight winter sports enthusiasts have been found unharmed and two more are being sought after an avalanche in Austria sparked major searches, raising fears of a much heavier toll, rescuers said.
The incident occurred around 3:00 pm local time (2:00 pm GMT) at an altitude of 2,700 meters above sea level in the Lech Surz ski area in the Vorarlberg region (west). Police, based on a skier’s video, initially “A dozen people were buried“.
One of them was rescued and the second managed to free himself and go to hospital, according to a spokesman. Six other people who appeared in the footage were eventually found safe and sound.
“On the other hand, we continue the search without news of two people.“, AFP Hermann Fercher, director of the tourism office responsible for communicating the progress of operations, announced. Several teams with helicopters and dogs were mobilized. No information was given on the identity of the people involved.
Rescuers have warned against the risk of avalanches in the region and in neighboring Tyrol this weekend, pointing to the weakening of the snowpack against a backdrop of milder weather. In recent years, in Austria, avalanches have caused an average of twenty deaths per year.
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