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A 14-year-old boy was swept away by an avalanche in Arcs en Savoir on Christmas Day. He was skiing with his family in an off-piste part of the area. The passage of a skier upstream may have triggered the avalanche.
A day of skiing on Christmas Day turned into a tragedy for a family in Les Arcs in Savoie. These French holidaymakers were working in the off-piste area of the Aiguille Rouge d'Arc 2000 when an avalanche was triggered in the afternoon. A 14-year-old boy was trapped by the avalanche.
As soon as the alert is given, trackers from the station and two dog teams go to the site. The teenager, who was not wearing an avalanche victim detector (AVD), was found using his skis 20 minutes later.
After another 10 minutes, the PGHM helicopter with a doctor on board arrived. For more than an hour, rescuers tried to resuscitate the young victim. Without success. The teen was pronounced dead shortly after 5 p.m.
The other members of the family, who were not injured, were taken care of by high mountain rescuers and directed to a psychological unit.
According to The Dauphiné Libéréthe avalanche would have been triggered by the passage of a skier further upstream, above the place where the teenager and his family were. On the morning of the tragedy, the avalanche intervention plan (Pida) carried out in the Aiguille Rouge sector had not triggered any snow slides, again according to our colleagues. The avalanche risk was 3 out of 5 outside marked and open trails.
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