Drama near Chamoson VS Two ex-policemen from Valais die in avalanche accident
Two ex-policemen from Valais have died in an avalanche near Chamoson VS. A 42-year-old died on site, a 41-year-old succumbed to his injuries on Friday. Another female ski tourer was injured and taken to hospital.
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- Two former Valais cantonal police officers have died in an avalanche near Chamoson VS.
- A 42-year-old died at the scene of the accident, a 41-year-old succumbed to his injuries in hospital and another ski tourer is still being treated.
- In view of the current avalanche situation, the authorities are once again warning of increased danger.
Three Swiss ski tourers were caught in an avalanche in Chamoson in Valais on Thursday. A 42-year-old man died on site, another, a 41-year-old, succumbed to his injuries in hospital on Friday. Both were once members of the Valais cantonal police force.
The accident occurred at around 12.15 p.m. in the Pointe de Chemo area in the municipality of Chamoson. A group of four ski tourers were on the eastern flank of the mountain at an altitude of around 2500 meters when an avalanche broke loose during the descent. Three people were swept away by the masses of snow.
The fourth participant immediately alerted the rescue services. Emergency services from the Cantonal Valais Rescue Organization (KWRO) were able to locate and rescue the victims with the help of two helicopters from Air-Glaciers and an aircraft from Air Zermatt.
Former police officers
Despite the first aid provided, a 42-year-old man died at the scene of the accident. A 41-year-old man was injured and flown by helicopter to the Inselspital in Bern. He succumbed to his injuries there on Friday, as the cantonal police and the public prosecutor's office announced later in the afternoon.
At the request of Keystone-SDA, the Valais cantonal police announced that the two victims were former members of the cantonal police. They confirmed information from the newspaper "Le Nouvelliste" and radio "Rhône FM".
A 53-year-old woman who was outside the avalanche also suffered injuries and was taken to hospital in Sion. All those affected are Swiss nationals.
The public prosecutor's office has opened an investigation into the circumstances of the accident.
Call for caution
The Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF points out that the avalanche situation in Valais remains critical for this weekend, wrote the cantonal police. In the past week, numerous, often large avalanches have been triggered by ski tourers or freeriders, sometimes with tragic consequences.
Last Sunday, 50-year-old Bernese snowboarder Ueli Kestenholz died in an avalanche accident in the Lötschental in Valais.
According to the SLF, the structure of the snowpack has persistent weak layers that prevent a good connection with the large amounts of fresh snow from last weekend. Since the beginning of the year, the rescue services in Valais have already been called out 20 times in connection with avalanche incidents.