Continued high danger

Huge dust avalanche “engulfs” mountain hut

(Bild: Franz-Senn-Hütte)

Five dead, numerous injured, dozens of rescue operations: that is the sad toll from Friday and Saturday alone – and only for Tyrol! The danger is still not over, as a dramatic avalanche in the area of the Franz Senn Hut in the Stubai Alps (see video above) impressively demonstrates. No one was injured – partly because the host had sent his guests down to the valley days ago as a precaution.

Late on Saturday afternoon, at exactly 4:25 p.m., the huge powder avalanche thundered down from an altitude of around 2,500 meters northwest of the Franz Senn Hut (2,149 m) in the Stubai Alps near Neustift from the Rinnensee area towards the hut. The natural spectacle was captured on video. The impressive footage was taken by the camera of the power station for the hut just below the refuge and by the webcams directly at the hut.

The hut is marked with a red circle. The extent of the avalanche is shown in the hatched area.(Bild: Franz-Senn-Hütte, Krone KREATIV)

The avalanche broke off at a great width (see image with hatched area) at an altitude of around 500 meters and stopped at around 2000 meters east below the hut. It crossed the approach to the Senn Hut.

Within seconds, the hut disappeared in a cloud of snow.(Bild: Franz-Senn-Hütte)

Guests sent down to the valley days ago
Hut owner Thomas Fankhauser had already sent the guests down to the valley a few days earlier for safety reasons and advised registered guests not to come. Otherwise, there would probably have been fatalities.

We are already familiar with this avalanche, and there was no danger to the hut itself.

Hüttenwirt Thomas Fankhauser

Fankhauser allowed guests to cancel free of charge and is currently alone with the staff in the refuge. "We are familiar with this avalanche; there was no danger to the hut itself," he explains. The power station failed because other avalanches further back had blocked the Alpeiner Bach stream.

Deadly series of avalanches in Tyrol
The series of deadly avalanches continued in Tyrol on Saturday. In Serfaus (Landeck district), a 41-year-old local man was caught and buried by a snow slab. The man was located by his companion and other first responders using an avalanche transceiver and was eventually dug out from a depth of almost two and a half meters.

The avalanche in Serfaus occurred directly below a railway line.(Bild: Polizei)

The victim had to be resuscitated. The 41-year-old later died in the Innsbruck clinic. This means that five people have died in avalanches in Tyrol alone since Friday. Across the state, an AT alert was even triggered on Saturday due to the high avalanche risk.

Warning level 4 also in effect on Sunday
The avalanche situation in the mountains of Tyrol remains extremely tense on Sunday. Warning level 4 of 5 is in effect across the region. "The fresh snow of the past few days and the snow drifts caused by strong to stormy winds are very unstable in all exposures. Winter sports enthusiasts can easily trigger avalanches. There are numerous danger spots. They are located at all altitudes, especially in the area of the tree line and above the tree line," warns the avalanche warning service in its situation report.

Roads may also be at risk
With the heavy snowfall, spontaneous avalanches are still possible. Some of these could break through deep layers and become large. Exposed traffic routes could be at high risk, it continues. 

In addition, isolated wet and gliding snow avalanches are possible. "This is particularly the case on embankments and grassy slopes below around 1800 meters." "Conditions for winter sports away from secured slopes remain generally very dangerous," the experts emphasize.

"Be sure to report negative avalanches"
To avoid unnecessary search operations, it is important to report negative avalanches as well, appealed the province of Tyrol. "Anyone who observes negative avalanches—i.e., avalanches that do not cause any damage—should report them immediately to the Tyrol control center." Negative avalanches can be reported by calling the emergency number 144, the Alpine emergency number 140, or via the SOS-EU-Alp app.