Avalanche in Birgkar: buried person freed himself
timeline
On Monday morning a person was freed from an avalanche near Mühlbach am Hochkönig (Pongau). The small slab of snow comes off on the descent of the ski tourer in the Birgkar.
According to the mountain rescue service, the 42-year-old from Pinzgau was traveling alone. In the morning he had climbed via the Erichhütte to the Taghaubenscharte (2,159 meters above sea level) and then drove down to the Birgkar at around 11 a.m., as operations manager Wolfgang Haggenmüller from the Mühlbach am Hochkönig mountain rescue service described to the APA.
Slid along with a snow slab on the descent
A smaller slab of snow broke up on the descent. The skier slipped with the snow and was partially buried. The Pinzgauer was able to free himself and make an emergency call. “He has sustained an ankle injury,” said Haggenmüller. Twelve mountain rescuers from Mühlbach were deployed.
The alpinist was rescued by a police helicopter Libelle and then flown to the hospital with the rescue helicopter. A total of twelve mountain rescuers from Mühlbach were involved in the operation. In the morning, the Salzburg avalanche warning service issued avalanche warning level two (moderate) in the Hochkönig area from 1,800 meters above sea level. In the afternoon, the avalanche danger rose to level three (considerable).