A glacier and a piece of rock broke off on the 3,300-metre-high Marmolada Mountain, the highest peak in the Dolomites, as many climbers were present on Sunday afternoon, causing an avalanche. Search and rescue teams reached the dead bodies of 6 people. The identities of 4 of those who lost their lives could be determined; It was announced that 3 of them are Italian and one of them is Czech.
It is stated that there are German citizens among the 8 injured, 2 of which are in serious condition.
In order to determine the number of casualties, aid workers also use methods such as reaching the owners of the vehicles in the parking lot in the region. Agencies state that the agency’s death toll is close to 30.
Luca Zaia, President of the Veneto Region, emphasized that the region attracts many tourists with the effect of the Dolomites being included in the UNESCO World Heritage list. Zaia said that the presence of foreign tourists in the area during the avalanche made it difficult to determine the number of casualties.
It is stated that the search efforts are progressing with difficulty due to the danger of a new avalanche. This morning, the search efforts continued mainly from the air, with helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Prime Minister Mario Draghi, together with local officials, is visiting the area today to meet with search and rescue teams.
CLIMATE CHANGE EFFECT
Experts and rescue teams emphasize that the reason for the rupture of the glacier is related to the extremely high temperatures in the region.
“The temperature has been unusual,” said Walter Milan, spokesman for the Alpine Rescue Association, regarding the weather in the region in recent days. Stating that the temperatures at the Marmolada summit have exceeded 10 degrees in recent days, Milan added, “This means extremely hot. It is obvious that there is an abnormal situation.”
Climatologist Massimiliano Fazzini told public broadcaster Rai that the glacier’s rupture may have been caused by the extreme heat associated with climate change.
A mountaineer who came down from the mountain shortly before the avalanche on Sunday told the Corriere del Veneto newspaper, “We had landed from Marmolada 15 minutes before the tragedy. The weather was hot, the snow was scarce and melted.” A witness named Michela stated that she last visited the region 2 years ago and said, “The current state of the glacier surprised us, it is in a very terrible condition. The color of the snow has turned black, it is full of spaces.”