Four Alpine Accidents in a Single Day: Multiple Serious Injuries in East Tyrol

The first incident occurred in the Landegg valley near the Rabenstein summit. A 60-year-old Austrian woman was on a bicycle tour with a companion, dismounted, and hiked on foot toward Rabenstein, according to the mountain rescue service. Shortly below the summit, where light scrambling is required, the woman held onto a large stone — it came loose under the strain and fell onto her foot. The alpine emergency number was dialed, and a rescue helicopter transported the injured woman to the Lienz district hospital, where a serious injury was diagnosed.

Rabenstein: Stone Comes Loose Under Grip

At the same time, another accident occurred on the Alte Kalser Weg at around 3,000 meters altitude on the Ködnitzkees. During the descent at around 1:30 p.m., a man broke through the soft glacier snow with his right foot, lost his balance, and fell sideways. He sustained serious injuries. Due to strong gusty northwesterly winds and recurring fog patches, the requested emergency medical helicopter was initially unable to pick up the patient; the mountain rescue service provided first aid until suitable weather conditions arrived.

Crevasse and Weather as Obstacles

In the afternoon at around 2:00 p.m., a 15-year-old Austrian was also injured during a downhill mountain bike event in Lienz. The teenager took a heavy fall and had to be given initial treatment by the ambulance service of the Lienz mountain rescue. He was then admitted with serious injuries to the accident outpatient department of the Lienz district hospital.

The most complex and at the same time riskiest rescue took place late in the afternoon on the Grossglockner. A 39-year-old German had reached the summit via the normal route from the Stüdl Hut with a mountain guide and was flown by emergency medical helicopter to the Lienz district hospital. Almost simultaneously, a Czech couple — a 24-year-old woman and a 29-year-old man — got into a life-threatening situation on the Stüdl Ridge.

Grossglockner: Rescue by Winch Operation

According to the mountain rescue service, the couple was climbing as a rope team of two with the man leading on the Stüdl Ridge. At about 3,650 to 3,700 meters altitude, the 29-year-old secured himself using a self-belay sling on a bolt, according to his wife's account, and sat down in his sit harness. The sling tore, the man fell about ten meters backward over steep, near-vertical rocky terrain and sustained serious injuries. A climber from the preceding rope team immediately abseiled down to him and provided first aid while the emergency call was placed.

Due to the adverse weather conditions, an additional police helicopter from Salzburg had to take over the rescue. The crew carried out a complex winch operation using a variable-length rope and recovered the seriously injured man. He was then flown to the Lucknerhaus, handed over there to the crew of the emergency medical helicopter, and transported after initial treatment to the Tauernklinikum Zell am See.

His uninjured wife was safely accompanied by incidentally present members of the Matrei and Kals mountain rescue teams over the Grossglockner summit to the Adlersruhe. The four operations show, in the assessment of the emergency services, how quickly favorable weather conditions, loose rock, and crevasses can endanger even experienced mountaineers.

Weather and Coordination Challenge Rescuers

The East Tyrol mountain rescue service pointed out that the weather situation on Saturday, with gusty northwesterly winds and recurring fog banks, also posed a serious challenge for experienced alpinists. Several helicopters had to fly between locations or wait due to weather conditions until a rescue was possible at all. The rescue coordination center coordinated the operations via the alpine emergency number and coordinated the helicopters between Salzburg, Lienz, and Zell am See.

In total, four people with serious injuries had to be flown to hospitals on Saturday. The authorities initially provided no further information on the condition of the injured or possible lasting damage.