On 23 February 1999, the ferocity of Alpine weather hit the Austrian town of Galtür with savage force. At 4pm, the avalanche, 100 metres high and travelling at more than 300 kilometres per hour, smashed into the village.
It was all over in less than a minute. Dozens of people were buried in the carnage, six homes were completely destroyed and 28 buildings badly damaged.
Without experienced rescue workers or specialist equipment, residents and holidaymakers began looking for survivors buried in the rubble. With no power, they worked in pitch black through the night.
More than 14 hours after the disaster, the skies cleared and helicopters arrived, bringing with them much needed medical supplies and rescuers. Eventually, 22 people were pulled free from the rubble alive. But despite their efforts, rescuers were unable to save everyone – the death toll reached 31. Many were killed instantly by the sheer ferocity of the avalanche. The youngest was just 5 years old and the oldest 96. One family lost three generations: grandmother, mother and daughter.
Though the weather had cleared, that brought a new danger – the warmer conditions meant melting snow. Officials recognised that this could cause shifting of the snow packs in the mountains above, increasing the chances of further avalanches. They realised that the entire town needed to be evacuated if another disaster was to be averted.
US Blackhawk helicopters were scrambled from peacekeeping duties in Bosnia to evacuate the thousands of people still stranded in the town. It was the one of the largest air lift evacuations ever carried out.
Since the disaster, £15 million has been spent on protecting Galtür. Five-metre high metal fences have been placed on the mountains to catch sliding snow and a reinforced wall has been built around the town. But the legacy of 31 lost lives remains as a reminder of the force of nature.
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