Industry News
A school ski trip from the Edvard-Beneš-Gymnázium in Břeclav, Czechia, ended in tragedy on Tuesday, December 9, when a 64-year-old teacher died after crashing into a tree at the Nassfeld ski resort in Austria.
According to police in Carinthia, the accident occurred around 12:30 p.m. on the Trögabfahrt slope, where a group of Czech students was skiing down the valley. For reasons that remain unclear, the teacher veered off the piste and fell roughly 10 meters (33 feet) before striking a tree.
Police said the teacher was still responsive when first responders reached him, but his condition deteriorated rapidly in the rescue helicopter. Despite resuscitation efforts, he died on the way to the hospital.
Austrian and Czech newspapers reported that the fall happened in full view of his students, who were in Nassfeld for a week-long school trip. “Our colleague suddenly died after a fall on the ski slope. This news is very painful for all of us,” school director Jiří Uher told the Czech outlet blesk.cz. He said the decision had been made to continue the course “after careful consideration,” with additional supervision and adjusted schedules to support the students.
The victim, described on social media as a passionate woodcarver whose artwork decorated the streets of Břeclav, had been a well-known figure in the community. School leadership has assured parents that “all organizational and safety precautions have been taken” and thanked them for their support during what they called an exceptionally difficult moment for the entire school.
Nassfeld is located in the state of Carinthia, close to the Italian and Slovenian border. The resort offers 110 kilometers (68 miles) of groomed runs serviced by 29 cable cars and lifts. The ski resort sees an average of 7-8 meters (23-26 feet) of snowfall and also has 540 snow guns to supplement natural snowfalls.
The tragic death of the school teacher marks the third death in Europe in less than a week.
