The line they were going for, “Neue Welt”, is pretty good, it requires an abseil and is fairly remote. Plainly not good conditions for that route either though.
Thanks for the video. Yes a single abseil plus a traverse on sketchy terrain, I can imagine that would be difficult in thick cloud. at least they were equiped for the via ferrata!
did he get a handle with his shovel and then his mates standing round while he shovels himself out of the snow, wft? And what’s with the beacon swap stuff at the start?
Still they followed their friends path at the start and that meant one of the group saw the hand in the snow. They were also waiting in a safe area and apparently sking 1 by 1.
Given some of the cock-ups on exercises (people wandering round with beacons transmitting) I can imagine a lot of cock-ups but there is a real lack of urgency in the digging.
I think you can draw some good lessons from this. I suspect the swap of kit was down to them not all having it. It would appear that the guy who leads the rescue takes a transceiver from one of the others and their pack with a shovel in it. Why not use his own? It may be that the transceiver he used was a digital one, which would certainly have been quicker if needed. I note the lack of shovel handle, no idea why(?) and you should always dig “up” to a casualty from below. Gravity can then assist in freeing them too. He did clear an airway first (good) but as you can see as he dug above, snow kept falling on him. It also shows how even a realatively loose snow avalanche can pack a victim in. Overall, any successful rescue is a good thing, but I’ll certainly be using this link when teaching to highlight pros and cons.
Is this the world’s most incompetent ski party? Lost, in fog on the descent from hell.
They’re certainly well up there and extremely lucky to be alive looking at both the terrain and the ability or lack there of in their party. Between some of the skiing, falls and the thing that gets me most is the 2 skiers skiing directly above one another on blind steep and unknown terrain. You’d think at a bare minimum they’d know to ski one section at a time in such dodgy terrain with the downhill skiers moving to a safe location when finished each section/pitch. Definitely seems like a case of some young guys with more confidence than sense or in other words all the gear and no idea. Now in saying that i’m not saying I didn’t make any stupid mistakes of my own when young and in my “apprenticeship” though I can’t ever recall being as consistently out of my depth, and also not even realising it, as it looks like they are.
did he get a handle with his shovel and then his mates standing round while he shovels himself out of the snow, wft? And what’s with the beacon swap stuff at the start?
Still they followed their friends path at the start and that meant one of the group saw the hand in the snow. They were also waiting in a safe area and apparently sking 1 by 1.
Given some of the cock-ups on exercises (people wandering round with beacons transmitting) I can imagine a lot of cock-ups but there is a real lack of urgency in the digging.
They had two beacons in a party of five--and one was on the victim. It’s pretty routine in the States for parties to go out in the backcountry with no avy gear whatsoever. These guys were actually better equipped than some. Embarrassing.
The lack of urgency in the rescue is astounding. He may have been trying to keep the party calm, which is good, but the first two minutes of faff are incredible.
And the first film with the erroneous route selection was some pretty cowboy stuff. The lack of concern throughout the whole thing amazed me. Although in they end, a pretty unforgettable adventure.
Ref speedy resuce
They had two beacons in a party of five--and one was on the victim. It’s pretty routine in the States for parties to go out in the backcountry with no avy gear whatsoever. These guys were actually better equipped than some. Embarrassing.
This is the responce of the group leader (the one taken by the slide) .
He is very honest about the mistakes made on the day and particuarly the key descisions taken before starting the descent.
Hats of to the group leader for posting a very honest assessment of the mistakes made, which as he says hopefully other people can learn from. Some of the subsequent flaming in the post reflects very poorly on those concerened, unfortunately that is the downside of the web at times. Some of those people should keep in mind my all time favourite internet quote before they post in future:
“Arguing with and bad mouthing someone online is like ### with a blow up doll, pointless and ultimately futile”
