"According to initial reports, the older climber was clipped into the fixed-rope section 20 meters above, when he saw the slab release and shouted a warning to his partner. His younger partner, who was not secured to the cable at that moment, could not avoid the avalanche and was swept away and carried down steep, rocky terrain by the snow masses. The 21-year-old was able to alert search and rescue immediately."
"Rescue teams from Ehrwald, Lermoos, and Grainau-supported by avalanche dog units, the police helicopter Libelle Tirol, and an emergency medical helicopter-responded to the scene. The buried climber was found under roughly 30 centimeters of snow by an avalanche dog, and emergency crews began resuscitation efforts immediately. Despite their attempts, he died from severe injuries at the site. The surviving climber, whose position on the rope prevented him from being swept away, was uninjured and was later cared for by a crisis intervention team."
"Lawinen.report described the avalanche as a small, shallow slab, triggered during the pair's ascent. Wind-affected snow was visible on the surface, creating unstable pockets despite an overall moderate avalanche danger (Level 2) in the region on Saturday. The Tyrolean avalanche report had warned that weak layers in the old snowpack could still be triggered by individual mountaineers. The upper circle indicates where the avalanche broke while the lower circle is the place the deceased hiker was found. | Image: Alpinpolizei"
A 19-year-old German climber was killed by a small slab avalanche on the Stopelzieher route on the Zugspitze while ascending a via ferrata with a 21-year-old companion. The slab released above the pair shortly before 10 a.m.; the older climber was clipped into a fixed-rope section about 20 meters above and warned his partner. The unclipped partner was swept 350 meters down steep, rocky terrain and buried under roughly 30 centimeters of snow. Rescue teams, avalanche dog units, police and medical helicopters responded; crews found the buried climber and began resuscitation, but he died at the site. The survivor was uninjured.
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