Backcountry
A 57-year-old Austrian woman died on Friday on the Schneebiger Nock, an 11,000-foot (3,358-meter) peak in the Rieserferner Group above Rein in Taufers, Italy, after a cornice collapsed and sent her plummeting down near-vertical, rocky terrain, local officials and media reported.
The woman set out alone on Friday on a ski tour to the summit. She is believed to have reached the top at around 2:30 p.m., where another ski tourer reported seeing her for the last time.
A collapsing snow cornice is believed to have caused her fall. Because she had been touring solo and had not reported a planned itinerary, no alarm was raised that day.
A search was launched Saturday after she failed to appear at work. The effort had to be suspended Saturday evening due to deteriorating weather and resumed Sunday morning. Deployed in the operation were the Bergrettung Sand mountain rescue team in Taufers, local authorities, and the emergency helicopter Pelikan 2.
The missing ski tourer was found dead around midday on Sunday above Rein in Taufers. She was discovered at roughly 8,500 feet (2,600 meters) using an avalanche transceiver. Austria’s Foreign Ministry confirmed her death to the national news agency APA on Monday.
The Schneebiger Nock, also known as Monte Nevoso, is the second-highest peak in the Rieserferner Group and is located in the Rieserferner-Ahrn Nature Park in South Tyrol. It’s a popular but challenging ski touring destination, with an ascent time of about six hours from the valley floor. Route guides warn of significant avalanche risk in winter, with cornices along its upper ridgelines.
In March 2016, a large avalanche released from the mountain’s northwest face resulted in the deaths of six people. The avalanche buried up to 15 ski tourers and was described at the time as the deadliest avalanche accident in South Tyrol in over 25 years.
No official statement had been released by the municipality of Sand in Taufers or the South Tyrolean mountain rescue service at the time of publication.
