• A cross-country skier from Lannemzan was caught in an avalanche Wednesday afternoon, at the peak of Taillon, in the Hautes-Pyrénées.

  • Thanks to a witness and his mobile phone, the polytraumatized man was able to be taken care of by the rescuers of the high mountain gendarmerie platoon.

  • The gendarmes call for the greatest vigilance in the mountains before next weekend, the situation being at risk in places.

He comes out miraculously, but suffers from numerous fractures. A cross-country skier passed near on Wednesday after being caught in an avalanche. He owes his salvation to a witness, but also to his cell phone. In the middle of the afternoon, the high mountain gendarmerie platoon of Pierrefitte Nestalas, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, receives a call alerting it that a man has just been caught in an avalanche near the peak of Taillon , near the Gavarnie circus.

The person at the end of the line is at the top of the peak and explains that he saw the skier going alone on the eastern slope before witnessing the onset of the avalanche, in a place where the slope is 40 degrees . Quickly, the rescuers set off. Meanwhile, the victim, partially buried, manages to use his damaged cell phone. “He was able to communicate with a friend by SMS, who alerted us. We recovered his number and were able to communicate with him, as well as geolocate him. He was extremely lucky that a witness saw him and his phone was working, he was caught in an avalanche for 300 meters and passed over a rocky bar 150 meters ", says Major David Sicilia, commander. deputy of the PGHM.

Thanks to a helicopter, rescuers were able to spot him quickly, while land resources waited lower, with the dog team in particular.

Supported, this inhabitant of the Lannemezan sector, polytrauma in the pelvis, legs and face, was medicalized on site before being hospitalized.

Call for vigilance

This new accident pushes the actors of the mountain to launch a new call for caution, especially for this weekend and the next when the travel restrictions between departments have been lifted.

“We call for the greatest vigilance, especially on the eastern and northern slopes.

We had an episode of snowfall above 1,200 meters not long ago, there were accumulations and plate formation.

We encounter traps that we usually have in the middle of winter, ”warns Major Sicilia.

In recent days, several people have died in the Alps, swept away by avalanches.

Miscellaneous

Isère: Two ski instructors from Alpe d'Huez die in an avalanche caused by ski mountaineers

Society

Hautes-Alpes: Three skiers killed in an avalanche in La Grave

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