Avalanche
A massive avalanche of about 1,640ft (500m) width occurred on Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023, below Les Dômes de Miage at the Armancette Glacier near the famous Mont Blanc in France. At least 14 people were caught in the avalanche and buried.
The avalanche occurred around 11:30 a.m. in the commune of Les Contamines-Montjoie in Haute-Savoie. It raced down almost 5,000ft of vertical, burying a busy ski touring trail below and ripping several skiers with it. In the pictures, you can see where the avalanche started, and it appears some skiers on the right were just spared from being pulled down. Many others were not so lucky.
The forty-year-old female touring skier was found through the GPS location of her mobile phone. The victims were on a busy skiing route, including two guides aged 49 and 39, and a man and woman in their 20s, France 3 reports. Six have been confirmed dead, one person suffered slight injuries, while eight others were completely unharmed. Initial reports were of four deceased, but a fifth person was found late in the evening. The search was abandoned at 9 p.m. but continued again this morning when they recovered a sixth person.
According to the Associated Press (‘AFP’), two mountain guides are among the deceased. The emergency response included 24 police officers, a PGHM helicopter, a civil security helicopter, three UAS doctors, four dog handlers with their dogs, two military criminal identification technicians, and six specialist police officers from Chamonix as well as four GMSP firefighters. The recovery has been difficult due to the sheer size of the search area and the risk of another avalanche.
The local police are asking anyone near the trail to come forward and confirm that they are safe and sound. The Haute-Savoie gendarmerie also would like to hear from any witnesses of the avalanche or any element that can make it possible to help with the search. Please share any information by calling 17.
No avalanche warning had been issued for the region, but a combination of warm and windy weather may have contributed to the slide. Skiers are advised to exercise extreme caution. Changing temperatures are inherently dangerous factors that impact the stability of snow packs.
The French President, Emmanuel Macron, expressed his condolences on Twitter:
An avalanche at the Armancette glacier in the Alps has led to casualties. We are thinking of them and their families. Our rescue forces are mobilized to find people still stuck in the snow. Our thoughts are with them as well.
Grosse coulée depuis les Dômes ce matin …
Prudence en hors piste pic.twitter.com/9Hxzj9qvHp— ⛷ Domaine Skiable des Contamines-Montjoie 🏂 SECMH (@domaineskiable) April 9, 2023
