Here's how the rescue operation unfolded

Extreme Risk of Falling! Families with Babies Rescued

Several hikers were located in the area marked by the red circles (left). Rescue crews rescued toddlers from life-threatening situations (center); the hiker who had lost his way in the photo on the right also had to be rescued by helicopter.(Bild: Bergrettung Sölden, Stephan Kuen)

Three extended families wanted to hike down into the valley from the Wildspitz chairlift’s mountain station (2,650 m) in Sölden, in the Ötztal valley of Tyrol—with toddlers and babies in strollers! They found themselves in avalanche-prone terrain and had to be rescued by the Sölden Mountain Rescue Service and helicopters. The successful rescue was a close call, as rescue personnel told the “Krone.”

On Sunday around 5:15 p.m., the Sölden Mountain Rescue Service received a report that between 10 and 15 people had become stranded near the mountain railway in the Vent district. “I then spoke on the phone with the person who reported the incident; she told me that everyone was safe but stranded,” explained Jakob Fiegl, head of operations for the Sölden Mountain Rescue Service.

Large-scale operation began
A few minutes later, however, the Tyrol Control Center reported that additional people were in a steep, accident-prone area, including one injured person. A large-scale rescue operation was launched.

Young Children in Grave Danger
Fiegl alerted the Martin 8 emergency medical helicopter and, later, the Libelle Tirol police helicopter as well. No wonder: As it turned out, three extended families totaling 36 people—including numerous (young) children—were, in some cases, in grave danger.

Children also had to be rescued from the avalanche zone.(Bild: Stephan Kuen, Krone KREATIV)

Hiking the trail with strollers
According to the police, the three families—who were friends—including 17 Belgians, nine Britons, seven Austrians, and three Americans—had originally planned to hike down from the mountain station back into the valley. For unexplained reasons, however, they chose a trail leading northeast. The unbelievable part: The group also included two babies not even a year old, whom their parents were transporting in strollers—on a path completely unsuitable for strollers!

Some were about half a meter above the precipice and could barely hold on. Even a stroller ended up in the area where the group fell.

Einsatzleiter Jakob Fiegl

Bild: Privat

Group scattered across the terrain
It happened as it was bound to: The 36 people, who were apparently completely inexperienced in the mountains, strayed from the trail and ended up in rugged, steep terrain near a steep gully at an elevation of about 2,300 meters. “We faced the challenge that the hikers had also scattered across the terrain. Some of them were about two hundred meters apart in elevation,” explains mission leader Jakob Fiegl.

One of the men in a steep gully(Bild: Stephan Kuen, Krone KREATIV)

Half a meter from the precipice
The situation was extremely critical: “Some were about half a meter above the precipice and could barely hold on. There was even a stroller in the steep, rocky terrain,” said Fiegl. 

Dramatic rescue of two brothers
Fourteen people were rescued by the Martin 8 emergency medical helicopter and the Libelle Tirol—many of them via rope. Air rescue worker Stephan Kuen (“Martin 8”) described the dramatic rescue of two boys from the steep gully in an interview with the “Krone.” “I set up a belay station and then secured one of the boys, who was in a dangerous position near a rock slab. Then I rappelled down with him to the boy’s brother, and from there we were flown out,” Kuen recounts. 

Father Watched the Rescue of His Sons
The boys’ father had to watch the dramatic rescue operation from a spot slightly higher up, where he was with other family members—including a toddler. These climbers were flown down to the valley by Libelle Tirol. 

Everyone returned to Vent unharmed
The Sölden Mountain Rescue team brought 22 hikers back down to Vent on foot or in emergency vehicles, where all 36 people were finally reunited—unharmed! “This story could have ended very differently; the rescue was a close call,” explains operation leader Jakob Fiegl. 

More and more rescues for inexperienced hikers
Franz-Josef Fiegl, head of the Sölden Mountain Rescue station, cannot recall a mission involving such a large group. He also finds it completely incomprehensible how the hikers chose a route that is completely unsuitable for strollers. In any case, the number of operations involving inexperienced hikers is on the rise.