Six people have died y at least 15 are missing after the detachment of a part of the Marmolada glacier, in the Dolomites (Italian Alps) in a tragedy for all “unimaginable“.
The tragedy occurred when a huge seracas these parts of the glacier, nearly 300 meters wide, are called, it broke off and produced an avalanche of ice and stones that devastated everything in its path in this area of the Alpsbetween the regions of Trentino and Veneto.
According to team sources Alpine Rescuewhich evacuated eighteen people from the area and closed off the entire glacier sector due to the risk of new landslides, at least 15 people are still missing, although checks are still being made to determine the exact number.
During the afternoon five helicopters were used with avalanche detection systems and units cinófilas in search of the disappeared, in any case, they add, “survivors are unlikely“, but the tasks will continue tomorrow.
In the zone a record temperature of 10.3 degrees has been recordedwhile the minimum it stayed above 5 degrees last night.
THE DETAILS OF THE DISASTER
The detachment occurred in the area of Punta Rocca, along the ascent route of the normal road, and dragged two groups of climbers, Italians and foreigners, and their guidesalthough the nationality of the victims has not yet been communicated.
Also eight were injuredone of them serious, they were only saved because they were far from the area of the collapse, hit by air displacement and some stones.
One of the members of the Luigi Felicetti Alpine Rescue explained to the media: “When we arrived we found ourselves in front of a terrible scenario. There were huge blocks of ice and rock everywhere.we started looking and found the first victims.”
According to Felicetti, the mountaineers are not to blame because “they were all with ropes and crampons and they were very well equipped, they were so unlucky“.
“IT’S A BUTCHER”
The injured were taken to hospitals in Belluno, Treviso y Trentowhile the bodies of the victims were taken to the sports palace of Canazei, a town located a few kilometers from the area and has activated a team of psychologists to assist the families of the victimswhich have not yet been identified.
“It’s such a big carnage that we will hardly be able to identify the victims, because the bodies have been dismembered“, the researchers admit, for this reason, it is likely that DNA tests will be necessary.
The witnesses explained that first there was a deafening crash and then a kind of avalanche of snow, ice and rock that devastated everything and they assure that nothing like this had ever happened in what they call “the queen of the dolomites“.
The Italian Prime Minister, Mario Draghi, expressed his condolences “to the families of the victims and to all those injured“, and is personally following the development of the rescue operations, informed by the Head of the Civil Protection Department, Fabrizio Curcio.
The Trento prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation against, for the moment, unknown persons and prosecutors Sandro Raimondi and Antonella Nazzaro stated that it is “a unimaginable disaster“.