Industry News
The frantic search for a missing five-year-old in the Ski Verena 2000 resort in the Asiago Plateau of Italy ended with a happy reunion Saturday evening, March 1, when rescuers found the child cold but otherwise unharmed after hours alone in the snow. The little boy, identified only as “Pietro,” had been skiing with his father near on the Civello slope when he vanished around 3 p.m. After initial searches of the slopes turned up nothing, Alpine rescue teams, ski instructors, and volunteers launched a desperate search through the rugged terrain.
Pietro and his father had ridden the Forte Verena six-seater chairlift to Forte Verena— a historic Austro-Hungarian fortress from World War I that still overlooks the plateau—for a day of skiing. At one point, the father briefly looked away—when he turned back, his son was gone. He alerted the lift operators who made announcements over the resort’s loudspeakers to no avail. Around 4:30 p.m., instructors from the Alpine Rescue of the Veneto Pre-Alpine Delegation, who had been training nearby, heard repeated appeals over the resort’s loudspeakers and joined the search, activating the Asiago Alpine Rescue team. While the ski resort is fairly small, offering 15 kilometers (9 miles) of groomed runs, there is extensive forested area surrounding the groomed runs.
After almost three hours since the last sighting, two Alpine Rescue instructors and two volunteer ski mountaineers from Valdagno finally spotted Pietro’s ski tracks leading off-trail and into the forest. For three kilometers, they followed the winding path as it cut through narrow trails and deep snow where the ski tracks ended and tiny boot prints could be seen in the snow. The search and rescue workers followed the tracks, calling desperately for the little boy when through the fading light, they heard a voice. “I’m here!” Pietro called out as he emerged from the woods, “but my skis are down there. I’m going to get them.” The rescuers rushed to the little boy, and wrapped him in thermal blankets, trying to warm the shivering five-year-old. The team immediately radioed the team at the base where his distressed parents were waiting for news. At 6 p.m., the elated parents, who had endured agonizing hours at the base camp, received the happy message that Pietro had been found and was well.
Rescuers cheered up the little boy to reassure him and carried him to the nearest trail where a snowmobile with an Alpine Rescue doctor arrived soon after. After a brief assessment by the doctor, the boy was loaded into the tray of the snowmobile, where the doctor kept him safe. When Pietro finally returned to base camp, his parents rushed to embrace him as onlookers erupted in applause. Though shaken, the young skier was unharmed—a testament to the swift action and coordination of Alpine rescue teams, ski instructors, and volunteers who ensured a day on the slopes did not end in tragedy.
Ski Verena 2000, located on the Asiago Plateau in Italy’s Veneto region, is a small yet popular ski area known for its family-friendly slopes and scenic alpine views. The resort stretches across the slopes of Monte Verena, which rises to 2,015 meters (6,611 feet), with a base elevation of 1,654 meters (5,426 feet). Offering a vertical drop of 361 meters (1,184 feet), the ski area features around 15 kilometers (9 miles) of groomed trails. Thanks to its extensive snowmaking system, Ski Verena maintains reliable conditions throughout the season, which typically runs from December to March. While it may not have the vast terrain of the Dolomites, the resort is known for its well-maintained slopes, making it a favored destination for beginners, intermediate skiers, and ski schools.
