Too much snow in parts of Austria.

[TQA]

Some ski resorts have been evacuated and others are essentially closed down with only a nominal lower lift running as meters of snow have fallen and the avalanche risk is extreme with more snow to come in the next 3 days.

Anything above the tree line is considered at risk of avalanche even on moderate slopes so most off piste is off limits.

But it is not all bad news as there is perfect powder to be found low down even to village level.

 

[Jacob]

I've been skiing in St Anton since Sunday, and I haven't even made it over to Stuben, let alone Zurs and Lech. The links were open yesterday morning but closed early. People had to use buses and taxis to get back to this side.

I've just been lapping the same few lifts the last four days, but I keep finding little powder stashes that keep getting replinished throughout the day.

The forecast is currently showing no snow Friday and Saturday.

 

[Ulmerhutte]

The FIS women’s races at St Anton this weekend have been cancelled: https://www.skiracing.com/stories/womens-speed-races-in-st-anton-cancelled-due-to-heavy-snowfall

It is just nuts over there. Stuben, Zürs, and Lech are cut-off from the outside world. Emergency controls in action: https://www.intra-stanton.com/help

A sense of déjà vu. We are due to arrive on Saturday. This time last year there was also a similar situation: people, like us, who were coming in on Saturday got in. All access was shut later that day, including railways. People were stuck in places like Innsbruck and Bregenz. Access only re-opened on the following Wednesday, by which time many had apparently gone home.

I gather there has also been an avalanche death in the area, but no details.

The storm is meant to ease early next week, but the next front will follow later in the week.

 

[TQA]

40 + villages cut off This included Lech which is one of the top resorts in Austria.

Update Lech is now partially accessible but chains are required.

Current road report

Lech - Warth: closedFlexenpass: car winter tyres and truck snow chainsArlbergpass: closedArlbergpass St. Anton bis Passhöhe: snow chain obligation except four-wheel drive vehicles uphillFlexenpass ab Stuben: car winter tyres and truck snow chainsFlexenpass ab Langen: car winter tyres and truck snow chainsArlbergpass Stuben bis Passhöhe: car winter tyres and truck snow chainsLECH bis ZÜRS: car winter tyres and truck snow chainsAlpe Rauz bis Passhöhe: closed

The authorities are hoping for a respite as the snow is supposed to stop Fri.Sat which will give them a chance to dig out the stuck trains/cars/trucks and do some much need avalanche control. Avalanche conditions are at extreme with 2 m + sitting on a very weak bottom layer.

 

[TQA]

There was another 2 to 4+ feet of snow in parts of Austria Germany and Switzerland over the weekend. The authorities are working flat out but it is clear that some skiers are ignoring closed signs in search of that perfect run.

About 10 skiers are dead or missing.

2 pisteurs avi techs are died when the explosives they were handling detonated prematurely.

Another 15 or so have died in snow related accidents.

Because of the sheer volume of snow many avalanches are travelling further than usual and hitting buildings and roads normally considered safe.

 

[Jim McDonald]

Not to make like of an obviously serious problem, but I hope the gods save some of that snow for March...

 

[Ulmerhutte]

About 30% of the Arlberg opened up yesterday, with more expected today. The sunshine yesterday bought out the crowds.

Some people taking huge risks, ducking under ropes into the off piste... mostly without any avi equipment, not that having it would excuse that stupidity.

St Anton is now accessible by road, but no news yet on the trains.

 

[Decreed_It]

Some people taking huge risks, ducking under ropes into the off piste... mostly without any avi equipment, not that having it would excuse that stupidity.

Headed there Feb 14-19 and we are in NO WAY going to even think about this. I like being alive and well. We are considering a half day guided trip off piste out of Kuhtai - but that'd be it! Amazed people take these risks, with all the obvious danger this season.

 

[Seldomski]

I'll be (attempting) to ski there (St. Anton) in about 10 days. I appreciate the updates...

 

[Primoz]

Amazed people take these risks, with all the obvious danger this season.

There are actually 2 sorts of people who do these. One that know what they are doing and the other, that has absolutely no idea what they are doing, and honestly, I don't think they even realize in what danger they are going to.
I have been skiing in Austria (not St. Anton or Tirol, but around Flachau, where it was mostly even worse then in St. Anton) all this time when this was going on, and I was off piste all the time (regardless if going up with lift or ski touring) and I would say I was never really doing anything stupid, even if avi level was at 4. Things are not so black and white, and even if avi level is 4 (or even 5 like it was in some cases), you can still find safe stuff if you know what you are doing, and why avi level is that high. In Salzburg land, main issue was super strong wind not so much amount of snow that was falling. Once you were staying in forest where wind wasn't transporting snow around, skiing was safe even on really steep slopes. Well honestly, with 2m fresh light powder, skiing anything but super steep stuff was not even possible, as you just got stuck But above tree line it was pure suicide.
Now to those other group... most of these people are people who are on ski holidays in resort and they wake up into 1m fresh snow. They have no idea what's going on, they have no idea about avalanches, or anything similar. Of course they also have absolutely no knowledge and no equipment. So as they saw on Youtube, skiing pow is cool, so let's go. There's no danger, besides, I'm in ski resort (things are different in Europe then in USA when it comes to this, but I'm not gonna go into that now), so what can happen, I'm only some 100m away from lift and track. These people just go and I don't think they even realize that they go into danger, or maybe death. And based just on newspaper articles (no real counting or proper stats), I would say in last 2 or 3 weeks of this snowmageddon in Austria, majority of skiing deaths would be from this second group.
But on the end, I agree, we both were ducking ropes and skiing by "Avi danger signs" like there's nothing there, so for someone watching from far away, there's no difference.

 

[Ulmerhutte]

At some level, I am fine with you ducking ropes and gesperrt signs. It is your life in the end. In doing so, you are potentially putting SAR personnel at risk, and I am not fine with that. Perhaps the regulations and signs should be changed to indicate you are heading into risky terrain and there will be no rescue until conditions are perfectly safe, which would inevitably mean corpse retrieval, not rescue.

 

[CalG]

Looks deep

 

[Primoz]

@Ulmerhutte realistically, any organized SAR in case of avi is corpse retrieval and not rescue. As far as first part, I don't really agree with you. I don't have intention to die, even though back country skiing can never be 100% safe, and I don't risk, or maybe better to say, I play is safe. But thing is, if there's avi level 4 or maybe even 5, it doesn't mean everything is deadly dangerous. Some places are, some places are perfectly safe, and going out, even if there are such conditions doesn't mean you play with your life. But you need to know few things about that terrain, snow and do some checks not just blindly get off the lift and into the waist deep pow.