Two skiers were killed in separate avalanche accidents on Monday in the French Alps, highlighting ongoing instability in the snow-pack despite generally moderate avalanche risk levels.
The first accident occurred on Monday afternoon in the Belledonne massif, in the department of Isère. A 38-year-old skier from the region was swept away by a large avalanche in the area of Lac de Crop, in the commune of Saint-Agnès. The incident took place shortly before 4 p.m. a 500-meter-long avalanche released on the steep NE face of the Grand Replomb at around 2500 meters (see photo for the descent route). The skier riggered a small slab near the summit which took sub layers. He was carried over cliffs. He was wearing an airbag which he deployed during the avalanche.
Grand Replomb NE Face
The victim was with a friend when both were caught by the slide. The second skier managed to escape and was later rescued by mountain police after becoming stranded in rocky terrain. He was winched to safety by a CRS Alpes helicopter. Ski tourers in the lac du Crop area and the surviving skier raised the alarm.
Also equipped with an avalanche transceiver, the buried skier was found dead by rescue teams from the CRS, supported by two helicopters, including Dragon 38 from Alpe d’Huez and a gendarmerie aircraft from Savoie. The body was recovered by a CRS unit based in Modane. The victim was described as "very experienced".
According to the avalanche bulletin for the Belledonne massif, the danger level was rated 2 (limited) above 1,700 meters on west-, north- and east-facing slopes. Forecasters warned, however, of buried weak layers in high-altitude north-facing terrain and the possibility of small wind slabs forming near ridge-lines under southerly winds. In rare cases, surface slabs could trigger deeper, more destructive avalanches.
A second fatal avalanche struck the same day in Montgenèvre, in the Hautes-Alpes at around midday. A skier in his early thirties was killed by what prosecutors described as an “avalanche of very large magnitude” while skiing off-piste on a north sector slope at 2200 meters in the Mont de la Plane (2507m) sector on the border with Italy. A companion who was with him at the time was unharmed.
The incident brings the number of avalanche-related deaths in the Hautes-Alpes to three in just three days. Over the weekend, two ski tourers were killed in an avalanche near Saint-Véran.
The avalanche risk in the Montgenèvre area was rated 3 (considerable) above 2,000 meters. Authorities warned of widespread instability on east-, north- and west-facing slopes due to persistent weak layers buried beneath wind-affected snow. These slabs, often difficult to detect, could be triggered by a single skier and result in medium to large avalanches, particularly above 2,300 meters.
Mountain rescue services are once again urging skiers to exercise extreme caution, carefully assess local conditions, and avoid steep off-piste terrain, even when avalanche risk levels appear moderate.
see also
https://pistehors.com/p86co3gBbNihPQ79ma9S/grand-replomb-north-east-face-belledonne-alps-france
