Eight Die in Three Avalanches in Austrian Alps

Eight people died in three separate avalanches that struck groups of skiers in the Austrian Alps on Saturday, amid unstable snow conditions triggered by recent heavy snowfall. The incidents occurred in the regions of Styria and Salzburg, prompting large-scale rescue operations and renewed warnings from authorities about the dangers of off-piste skiing.

In the first incident, reported around 2 p.m. local time, an avalanche buried a group of seven off-piste skiers in the Pongau area near Salzburg, in the Gastein Valley. Four members of the group were killed, one was seriously injured, and the remaining two were rescued unharmed, according to mountain rescue officials. The slide occurred at an altitude of about 2,150 meters in the Finsterkopf area of the Großarl Valley. Rescue teams, including four helicopters, around 90 mountain rescuers, Red Cross dog units, and a crisis intervention team, responded promptly. The injured were airlifted to nearby hospitals for treatment.

Approximately 90 minutes earlier, a woman skiing with her husband was caught in another avalanche in the nearby Bad Hofgastein area, at around 2,200 meters. She was fully buried and later pronounced dead despite...