Investigation After Five Ski Mountaineers Die in Swiss Avalanche
26th May 2025
Last modified on May 27th, 2025
They were located after another group saw some abandoned skis near the summit of a mountain near Zermatt with no sign of their owners. A separate avalanche in Switzerland has killed another skier. UPDATED
On Saturday May 24th at 4.30 pm two ski tourers climbing the Rimpfischhorn in the Zermatt region of Switzerland raised the alarm after finding skis at the foot of the summit with no sign of their owners.
The abandoned skis were located above the saddle, where a ski depot is usually set up so ski tourers can ascent to the summit at 4,199m.
An Air Zermatt helicopter with a paramedic, an emergency doctor, and two KWRO rescue specialists on board immediately flew over the area.
The Rimpfischhorn mountain is east of Zermatt and south of the village of Saas Fee.
Three of the bodies were found on the debris of an avalanche 500m below where the skis were spotted.
The other two bodies were discovered 200m from where the skis were left.
The authorities have released details about three of the five people who died.
They are two men aged 38 and 35, and a 34-year-old woman.
All of the identified people are Swiss nationals.
The police said preliminary findings indicated that the five left the Britannia hut in the Saas-Fee region at about 4:30 am (0330 GMT) on Saturday.
Elsewhere in Switzerland at the weekend three men were buried in an avalanche on the Morgenhorn in Kandersteg in the canton of Bern on Saturday.
A 29-year-old Swiss man was pronounced dead at the scene and the other two were flown to hospital.
By the middle of April there has been ten avalanche fatalities in Switzerland which was below the annual average:
In May there have been four separate accidents with another ten deaths which brings the total to above the seasonal average.
The public prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into the two latest accidents.
As the temperatures rise with the end of the winter the snow is unstable in places and the authorities are advising caution.
There are increasing risks in high alpine zones this week, particularly on north-facing slopes above 3,000m.
The Swiss Avalanche Center (SLF) classified the avalanche near Zermatt as a slab avalanche and stated that the avalanche snow was dry.
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