5 German mountaineers die in northern Italy after being hit by avalanche
ROME (AP) – Five German climbers died in an avalanche in South Tyrol in northern Italy, rescuers said Sunday.
Three victims, two men and a woman, were found dead on Saturday, while the bodies of two other missing people, a man and his 17-year-old daughter, were found Sunday morning.
“They had been dragged to the lower part of the valley where the avalanche occurred,” Alpine rescue spokesman Federico Catania said. “Considering the deteriorating weather conditions at high altitude, rescue teams are now returning to the valley.”
The climbers, all German, were hit by an avalanche while climbing to an altitude of more than 3,500 meters (11,500 feet) near Cima Vertana in the Ortles mountains around 16:00 on Saturday. Rescue teams said it was unknown why the climbers were still moving upwards at this relatively late hour.
According to initial information, the climbers were traveling independently of each other in three groups. The two survivors of the crash were taken by helicopter to a hospital near Bolzano.
South Tyrol is a popular region for mountaineering among tourists from Germany. The highest peak in the region is Ortles, rising to 3,905 metres.
Avalanche accidents are a persistent problem in the Italian Alps; The country has one of the highest 10-year average annual death rates among major skiing countries. Victims are often ski climbers or freeriders.
Some analysis suggests that the number of accidents has increased in recent years, possibly because more people head to rural areas on the heels of new snowfall.
