Tirol trains 60 students in avalanche safety

About 60 students from three schools took part in the fourth Euregio avalanche information days in Innsbruck this week, learning how avalanches form and how to make safer decisions in winter terrain, ORF reported.

The annual event is organised before the winter season by the Euregio Tirol-South Tyrol-Trentino and the Tyrol Avalanche Warning Service. Its focus is avalanche basics and appropriate behaviour in alpine terrain.

In 90-minute workshops, experts from the warning service and Tamara Tschanhenz, head of the snowinstitute, explained different types of avalanches and what to consider when planning activities in winter terrain. Students also used interactive displays at the Euregio Avalanche Exhibition and tried equipment such as avalanche probes. The exhibition at the Euregio information centre in Innsbruck is free to visit year-round.

Patrick Nairz, head of the Tyrol Avalanche Warning Service, said young people should learn about the risks early. Dramatic off-piste descents are common on social media, he said, but the dangers beyond marked pistes are often not shown.

Free learning materials in German and Italian are available on an online platform. The daily Euregio avalanche report, which provides current conditions for Tyrol, South Tyrol and Trentino, is due to begin in December and will also be broadcast on ORF Radio Tirol.