Austrian avalanche kills 33-year-old Amsterdam man
A 33-year-old man from Amsterdam was killed in an avalanche in Lech-Zurs, Austria on Monday, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to ANP after reports from Austrian broadcaster ORF.
The avalanche happened around 12:30 p.m. on Monday. Emergency services were at the scene within minutes, but still too late to help the Dutch an. According to Lech mayor Ludwig Muxel, the man was under a meter and a half of snow when the rescuers freed him.
It was initially thought that the avalanche buried multiple people, but later turned out that only the Dutch man was caught under the snow mass. According to ORF, the victim was sking in a field near Lech with another Dutchman an a guide when the avalanche hit. The other two people managed to escape unharmed. The avalanche was about 300 meters long and 80 meters wide.
The Amsterdam ma is the third person to die in an avalanche in Austria in the past six days, Het Parool reports.