Five people killed and one injured following avalanche in Austrian Alps
4 February 2022, 18:48
Five people have died and another has been injured after an avalanche in the Austrian Alps.
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It came after a particularly dangerous day in the Alps, which saw heavy snow followed by warm weather, a rescue official told Reuters on Friday.
One of the victims was initially believed to have been missing before a supervisor at the emergency services control centre later updated that they had died.
The incident took place in the Austrian state of Tyrol on Friday, near the Austrian-Swiss border in the Spiss municipality.
Rescue helicopters from Switzerland and Austria were sent out to find anyone who may have been caught in the avalanche.
A further person was found suffering minor injuries, Reuters said.
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But it is not immediately clear what activity the avalanche victims were involved in at the time, Patrick Ortler, another supervisor at the control centre in Tyrol, said.
Information about the identities and nationalities of the victims is not immediately available.
At least 31 separate avalanches had been reported as of Friday afternoon, local officials said.
Four of which - including one that occurred near Soelden and another in Zillertal - involved confirmed injuries.
Five people have so far been rescued alive in the aftermath of the Soelden avalanche, according to Mr Ortler.
In recent years, about 20 people have been killed each year by avalanches in Austria.
The last two seasons have been less deadly as the coronavirus pandemic reduced the number of skiers.
