The 2016 Geier avalanche was an

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and earth ...

which occurred in Wattenberg,

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, on 6 February 2016. Five people were killed (all Czechs), when the disaster struck in the Geier mountain range. The avalanche occurred shortly after midday near the mountain hut Lizumer Hütte. This was one of 19 avalanches reported in Tyrol on 6 February. The avalanche risk level in

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

was three out of a possible five, deemed "considerable".

Avalanche

The avalanche spread over a 2 km wide area, in the Wattental Valley in the Western Apline region of Tirol, burying 17 skiers from the Czech Republic who were taking part in a "free ride camp" and had been previously warned about the danger of an avalanche by locals. Martin Waldhart of Mountain Rescue stated at a press conference that the group had been skiing in an area that had been classified as an "absolute risk zone". Resucue workers used dogs and helicopters to search for the groups and at the time of locating them, some of the skiers had already freed themselves.

Victims

There were two ski groups from the Czech Republic caught up in the snowslide, including two guides. The avalanche killed 5 skiers of the parties, and injured two, with the remaining members of the party uninjured. There were no other fatalities, but several people were reported injured.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2016 Geier Avalanche Geier avalanche Geier avalanche Geier February 2016 events in Europe Natural disasters in Austria Tyrol (federal state) Avalanches in Austria 2016 disasters in Austria