Second Fatal Avalanche in a Month Strikes at Piz Palü, near Diavolezza, Switzerland

At noon on Sunday, May 19, a backcountry skier was swept away and killed at the Piz Palü in Switzerland. This is the second fatal avalanche in the same mountain range in a month. An ice fall triggered an avalanche below Piz Palü on the Morteratsch Glacier on Sunday, May 5.

• Related: Ice Fall on Glacier Kills German Backcountry Skier Near Diavolezza, Switzerland

A group of four backcountry skiers from Milan, Italy, ascended Piz Palü on Sunday morning via the popular route from the Diavolezza ski area, which is part of the Engadin St. Moritz ski area. The group took the tramway to the top of Diavolezza station at 9,770 feet (2,978 meters) and hiked up from there to Piz Palü at 12,792 feet (3,899 meters). After reaching the summit, the group separated for the descent with two skiers/boarders descending the same way they came and two skiers/boarders going down the northern flank. When the two men went down the northern flank, an avalanche broke at around 12:00 p.m., catching one of the men and carrying him for several hundred meters into the depth and burying him. The other skier/boarder remained unharmed and alerted search and rescue. Unfortunately, the rescue workers were only able to retrieve the lifeless body of the 38-year-old Milanese man.

The search and rescue was joined effort by REGA, Heli-Bernina AG, the Alpine Rescue Switzerland, and the Cantonal Police of Graubünden. The exact cause of the avalanche accident is under investigation by the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Alpine Police of the Cantonal Police of Graubünden.

The deceased has been identified as Alessandro Stucovitz from Milan, Italy. He was part of a group of young professionals from Milan who would venture into the mountains on weekends for many years to film their backcountry adventures. The group would often document their trips for the YouTube and Instagram channel run by Luca Zanette called “Every Damn Weekend” (shared below).

Stucovitz’s death was one of four deaths in the Swiss mountains this weekend. On Sunday a hiker was killed in a fall at the Breithorn near Zermatt, and two Italian men were killed at the Pigne d’Arolla near Zermatt. This pushes the number of avalanche-related deaths for the season to 23, above the 20-year mean of 21 annual deaths. It is also the second death this month at Piz Palü. Two weeks ago on May 5, a German backcountry skier was killed on his ski descent from Piz Palü via the Morteratsch Glacier.