"After the Christmas holidays, ski areas tend to remain crowded throughout January and February, increasing the pressure on both slopes and rescue services. And heavy snowfall in the past few days have also caused major disruption. "The risk will persist in the coming days. The sun will continue to shine, and the warm weather could trigger some spontaneous avalanches", said Commander Corentin Hassmann, captain of the world's largest mountain rescue station (PGMH), in an interview to French media France Inter."
"Marie Wencker, chief of staff to the prefect of Savoie, highlighted the dangers of off-piste skiing. "We have a number of skiers who went off-piste despite the risks. What I want to emphasise is that by risking their lives, skiers engaging in activities that are currently unsuitable, given the situation, are also putting entire rescue teams at risk, as they operate in sometimes quite difficult conditions", she told French radio Ici."
Six people died over a weekend in separate avalanches while skiing off-piste in French Alps resorts including Courchevel and La Plagne. The avalanche risk across much of the region remains high, and off-piste skiing is strongly discouraged until the snow cover stabilises. Resorts are particularly busy after the Christmas holidays, keeping slopes and rescue services under pressure. Recent heavy snowfall has caused major disruption. Warm, sunny weather could trigger spontaneous avalanches in coming days, and mountain rescue authorities advise staying within secured areas and consulting or hiring professional guides. Off-piste activity also places rescue teams at increased risk.
Read at www.thelocal.fr
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]