200 emergency services in Austria: Several buried under avalanche missing

An avalanche buried several people in an Austrian ski area.

200 emergency services in Austria: Several buried under avalanche missing

An avalanche buried several people in an Austrian ski area. Dozens of emergency services go on the search with helicopters and specially trained dogs. But so far only one person has been saved.

About ten people were buried in an avalanche in the Austrian ski resort of Lech Zürs. The Vorarlberg police could not name the exact number of people, according to "Der Standard". According to the authorities, one person was injured after a relatively short time. Helicopters and avalanche search dogs were therefore used to search for the buried people. According to the Voralberg municipality, almost 200 people were in action in the evening, who took part in the search on the avalanche cone.

"We do everything we can to save the winter sports enthusiasts," said the Lech municipality. In order to be able to continue the search for the buried people in the dark, searchlights were requested. A country road had also been closed because rescue helicopters were stationed there.

According to the Austrian news agency APA, the avalanche went off around 3 p.m. in the area of ​​the 2720 meter high Trittkopf. According to a police spokesman, the masses of snow had also reached the slopes of the ski area and buried winter sports enthusiasts there.

Another avalanche in the morning had ended lightly. In Sölden, about 100 kilometers from Zürs, there was a fear that the masses of snow would have buried a person. The avalanche went off around 12.30 p.m. on Tiefenbachferner near the mountain station. After around two and a half hours of searching with 40 helpers and several dogs, the all-clear was given that the fear had turned out to be wrong.

A lot of snow had fallen in the high alpine terrain in the past few days. Spring-like conditions then prevailed on this Sunday. At the same time, according to the avalanche warning service, the avalanche danger was considerable.