We were called out to a total of 5 incidents this weekend.

In the early hours of Saturday afternoon, a toboggan rider lost control of his sled on the descent from Siebenbrunnerwiese towards Preiner Gscheid and crashed into a tree. The person was so seriously injured that he had to receive emergency medical treatment on site. The Christophorus 3  helicopter that was requested was unable to reach the scene due to the wind conditions, therefore a mountain rescue emergency doctor from our local station and the emergency doctor from the Bruck-Mürzzuschlag Red Cross, who is also a trained mountain rescuer, provided care together with the comrades from our local station and the Reichenau mountain rescue team. The person was then transported to the Preiner Gscheid using an Akia and handed over to the Red Cross.

On Sunday morning, a person fell down around 200m in the "Grubbichl" area on the Schneealm due to the icy conditions and remained injured. Supported by the Neuberg mountain rescue team, the Christophorus 17 emergency helicopter was able to rescue the person and the accompanying person from the area using a rope.

In the early hours of Sunday afternoon, a ski tourer lost his footing in the large Karlgraben and slid several hundred meters down the steep, icy gully. The person tried to continue downhill himself. However, due to his injuries, this soon came to an end and the mountain rescue team was called. Together with comrades from Reichenau Mountain Rescue, the person was given first aid and has then been transported by the Christophorus 3 emergency helicopter using a rope.

Later on Sunday afternoon, we were informed by the country warning center that a pair of mountaineers were stuck in the Rax area. After consultation with the emergency callers by our operations management, the people were located and guided to the nearest hut. Due to the accessibility of the scene and the approaching darkness, it was decided to call in the Libelle Steiermark police helicopter for assistance, which also carried out the rescue.

While the people on the Rax were being rescued by Libelle Steiermark, we received another emergency call. Two mountaineers were in the winter room of the Karl-Ludwig-Haus and were no longer able to make the descent on their own due to the prevailing conditions in the upper part of the ascent, where there was mostly bare ice over long stretches. In the last light, the Libelle Steiermark was also able to bring these climbers safely down to the valley, saving our comrades a lengthy, terrestrial rescue!

Please take the current conditions into account when planning your tour! Crampons for ski tourers and crampons adapted to the footwear are currently part of the standard equipment of every mountaineer in the Rax/Schneealm area! Many thanks to all the emergency services for their perfect cooperation during all operations!
Red Cross Bruck-Mürzzuschlag
Alpine Police Hochsteiermark
Helicoptercrews of Police Steiermark, Styria Christophorus 3,  Christophorus 17 
Mountain Rescue Reichenau
Mountain Rescue Neuberg