Avalanche Emergency

Figure 1: Survival (percent) of completely buried victims with respect to the burial time (minutes) (10). Up to 18 minutes after being buried in an avalanche, almost all buried victims survive if they are not seriously injured. Between 18 and 35 minutes the "fatal kink” of the survival curve is reached. During this period, all the buried victims without an air pocket die quickly through suffocation. After 35 minutes only the buried victims with an air pocket survive.

It is crucial that group members dig out the buried victim within a quarter of an hour, and every second counts. Quick location and quick shovelling are needed to rescue the buried victim. In ideal conditions, determining the position with an avalanche beacon takes 3-5 minutes and extricating the victim from under one meter of snow with a shovel takes 10-15 minutes (using ski tips it takes one hour). The more shovels are available, the sooner the victim can be dug out. Group members must remember their responsibilities to other members of the group as well as to themselves.



		Death waits for 18 minutes



		Figure 1: Survival (percent) of completely buried victims with respect to the burial time (minutes) (10). Up to 18 minutes after being buried in an avalanche, almost all buried victims survive if they are not seriously injured. Between 18 and 35 minutes the "fatal kink” of the survival curve is reached. During this period, all the buried victims without an air pocket die quickly through suffocation. After 35 minutes only the buried victims with an air pocket survive. It is crucial that group members dig out the buried victim within a quarter of an hour, and every second counts. Quick location and quick shovelling are needed to rescue the buried victim. In ideal conditions, determining the position with an avalanche beacon takes 3-5 minutes and extricating the victim from under one meter of snow with a shovel takes 10-15 minutes (using ski tips it takes one hour). The more shovels are available, the sooner the victim can be dug out. Group members must remember their responsibilities to other members of the group as well as to themselves.

Death waits for 18 minutes