A devastating series of avalanches across the Austrian Alps on Saturday claimed the lives of eight skiers in three separate incidents, prompting urgent safety warnings from local authorities.
Three Separate Incidents Claim Lives
The deadly sequence began in the afternoon of Saturday, January 17, 2026. Three Czech tourists were killed after being swept away from their group of seven in the Murtal district of Styria, central Austria. The incident occurred at approximately 4.25pm local time.
Police confirmed the three individuals were completely buried by the snow. Rescue teams managed to locate and partially extricate them, but despite immediate efforts, all three were pronounced dead. The four other members of the group, who avoided the avalanche, were rescued from the alpine terrain and received emergency medical treatment. Adverse weather delayed the recovery of the bodies until Sunday.
Salzburg Region Hit by Double Tragedy
Earlier on Saturday, near the city of Salzburg, a separate avalanche struck a group of seven skiers. This incident resulted in four fatalities and left one person seriously injured. Mountain rescue services were alerted to the tragedy at around 2pm local time.
Just ninety minutes prior to that, another avalanche in the same region buried a female skier. She was also killed, bringing the day's grim total to eight lives lost.
Officials Issue Stern Warning After Fatal Week
Local mountain rescue chief, Gerhard Kremser, expressed his profound sympathy, stating: ‘Our deepest sympathies go out to the families. This tragedy painfully demonstrates how serious the current avalanche situation is.’ Officials have squarely blamed heavy snowfall from the preceding week for creating the perilous conditions and are imploring all visitors to heed official warnings.
These latest deaths contribute to a significant toll across the Alps in recent days. A 13-year-old Czech boy died in an avalanche at Austria's Bad Gastein resort on Tuesday. The previous Sunday, a 58-year-old skier lost his life in an avalanche in Weerburg, western Austria.
The danger has extended beyond Austria's borders. On Friday, a German man was killed and four others injured in an avalanche while cross-country skiing in Switzerland. Furthermore, six skiers died in avalanches at several Alpine resorts in France last weekend, underscoring the widespread risk across the region.
