A Dutch tourist died after being caught in an avalanche, while four other skiers narrowly escaped. The events took place during a skiing expedition in the peaks of Țarcu Mountains, accessible only by helicopter.

Among those who escaped is Cristian Dunca, the son of the president of the Caraș Severin County Council. Romeo Dunca, the father, was piloting the helicopter that took the group to the mountain and then transported the victim to the hospital, according to statements he made to TVR Info.

The local official argued that the 44-year-old Dutch skier who died triggered the avalanche. The latter had set off with four other skiers on a mountain expedition to Căleanu Peak in the Țarcu Mountains, at an altitude of over 2,000 meters. At one point, they were surprised by a snowslide, and the Dutch skier was caught in the snow. His body was discovered hundreds of meters away. 

The surviving skiers notified the company that organized the expedition, and the man's body was transported to the hospital in Caransebeș by a helicopter piloted by Romeo Dunca.

"It is a preferred area for skiers who want to go off-track. It is known that there is this type of skiing called off-piste. We were called when one of those caught in the avalanche called 112, signaling what happened, but by then, Salvamont's intervention was too late because the avalanche had already occurred," said Cornel Galescu, head of Salvamont Caraș-Severin - the local mountain rescue service.

The man's body was taken to the hospital's morgue, pending an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death. The police have opened a criminal case for manslaughter and are now trying to find out under what circumstances the tragedy occurred.

From the initial data, the tourists were doing heliskiing, an extreme form of skiing where athletes are transported by helicopter to the most remote mountain areas, where the snow is untouched.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Salvamont Caras-Severin on Facebook)