Those who died on Mount Cheget 03.03. An avalanche descended on the slope of the Caucasian mountain Cheget in Russia: seven skiers died
On the northern slope of Mount Cheget, in Kabardino-Balkaria, in a zone prohibited for skiing, at an altitude of 2800 meters above sea level, on March 3, seven young freeriders, including three girls, died. Rescuers managed to pull one 29-year-old extreme from a snow trap.
Snowboarders and skiers deliberately "cut" the avalanche on the virgin snow. And in social networks the day before they posted photos against the background of signs "Avalanche Danger".
About how the rescue operation was organized and why, despite the avalanche equipment, only one of the eight athletes managed to escape, "MK" was told by the deputy head of the Elbrus high-mountainous search and rescue team of the Russian Emergencies Ministry Albert Khadzhiev and the operational duty officer Ruslan Dzhappuev.
The northern slope of Mount Cheget is avalanche-prone, nets are stretched there, over which it is impossible to call in, appropriate shields hang that warn of avalanches, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - The dead deliberately went off-piste. They simply bypassed the restrictive barriers on foot, climbed higher and began to descend the virgin lands ...
This slope is closed from the beginning of the season. There are “wolves” standing around - red flags. It is simply impossible not to see them, - Ruslan Dzhappuev confirms what was said.
Rescuers say that from the place where their detachment is based in Terskol, this avalanche was clearly visible.
This slope is not far from us. The first group of rescuers of nine people immediately moved to the place of the emergency. On the first day, we found 4 corpses and one survivor, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - Since there was no more information, we curtailed the work. And in the evening, around 17:00, the extreme people missed three more of their comrades in the hotel. On the morning of March 3, we had already advanced on the slope of the mountain in larger forces. The slopes were pre-treated - fired upon by the avalanche service - and we began work. 35 professional rescuers and 15 volunteers worked at the scene of the incident. The bodies of three more people were quickly found.
Read also: "The fish rots from the head." And the man?
Rescuers walked in a line. They took half a step, they made an injection with a probe, another half a step - again an injection. The caretakers of the cable cars helped us a lot. At the same time, specialists observed the slope of the mountain from below and from above, - Ruslan Dzhappuev says in turn.
The avalanche was on a wide front, but it cannot be called such a huge one, since there was little snow on the slope. But even this multi-ton mass was enough to cover the freeriders who were descending the slope.
Cynological calculations were involved in the search work. “Dogs work most efficiently in the first few hours, when a person is still alive under the snow,” Dzhappuev explained.
Vladimir and Yana on Cheget. The photo was taken the day before the death. Photo: social networks
- Guys found in one place?
No, the dead were scattered over different heights. Many of them ended up under a two-meter layer of snow, Khadzhiev explains. - The only survivor under the avalanche, a 29-year-old from Nizhny Novgorod, had an avalanche sensor in his pocket. Thanks to this, he was saved.
Another one was lucky: he turned out to be a little higher. If it's not heavily snowed down, oxygen continues to flow for some time, - adds Ruslan Dzhappuev.
As far as I know, foreign freeriders use avalanche pillows, which, when an avalanche descends, work like a lifeline, push a person to the surface ...
This is a very expensive pleasure. It is worth pulling the handle, and a special cartridge with compressed gas will instantly inflate two bags of 150 liters behind the back, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - This ABS backpack was worn by one of the victims. The system worked, but the board still pulled the man down, and he suffocated. The airbag greatly increases the chances of a person caught in an avalanche not to drown in it, but, unfortunately, it does not guarantee one hundred percent that a person can be saved.
Read also: Since the beginning of this year, the population of Ukraine has decreased by 1.5 million people.
Among the dead was a native of Kirov, 30-year-old Oksana Sannikova, who last years lived in Nizhny Novgorod. The girl was a master of sports in alpine skiing. Working several seasons at the ski base, she regularly listened to lectures on avalanche safety. As part of the women's team, Oksana became the bronze medalist of the championship and the Cup of Russia in bandy. On the northern slope of Cheget, a young family, Spartak fans Volodya and Yana Shanina, also died.
29-year-old Vladimir Shanin was a football player and midfielder. Played in the amateur league for various teams.
- Is it possible to deal with violating freeriders somehow?
There used to be a control and rescue service, and now there is a high-mountain search and rescue squad, - says Dzhappuev. - Previously, if a person broke the rules, the rescuer caught up with him, took away one ski. The skier had to walk down the mountain.
And now, just a little, they start to complain. Our principle is this: the customer is always right. Previously, before the closure of the cable car, rescuers descended from the mountain, completely examined the slope. Now nobody does it. Nothing can be banned...
They watch videos of foreign extreme sportsmen descending, "cutting" avalanches. And they rush to imitate them. And beforehand, they are written off on the Internet, gather in groups to unite and go down the virgin lands. They need untouched snow thrill, for them a special thrill - to swim in the snow. They want to leave their mark, where there are no traces of others yet. None of them thinks about the worst, they act, relying on the Russian "maybe". For them, the main thing is to post the appropriate video on the Internet. Adrenaline plays, that's it - let's go! They ride a snowboard for a year or two, and already they think they are aces.
Agree with colleague Albert Khadzhiev:
Despite the terrible tragedy, I think that in two days new extreme sportsmen will ride on unprepared slopes. And the accidents will continue.
Snowboarders and skiers deliberately "cut" the avalanche on the virgin snow. And in social networks the day before they posted photos against the background of signs "Avalanche Danger".
About how the rescue operation was organized and why, despite the avalanche equipment, only one of the eight athletes managed to escape, "MK" was told by the deputy head of the Elbrus high-mountainous search and rescue team of the Russian Emergencies Ministry Albert Khadzhiev and the operational duty officer Ruslan Dzhappuev.
The northern slope of Mount Cheget is avalanche-prone, nets are stretched there, over which it is impossible to call in, appropriate shields hang that warn of avalanches, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - The dead deliberately went off-piste. They simply bypassed the restrictive barriers on foot, climbed higher and began to descend the virgin lands ...
This slope is closed from the beginning of the season. There are “wolves” standing around - red flags. It is simply impossible not to see them, - Ruslan Dzhappuev confirms what was said.
Rescuers say that from the place where their detachment is based in Terskol, this avalanche was clearly visible.
This slope is not far from us. The first group of rescuers of nine people immediately moved to the place of the emergency. On the first day, we found 4 corpses and one survivor, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - Since there was no more information, we curtailed the work. And in the evening, around 17:00, the extreme people missed three more of their comrades in the hotel. On the morning of March 3, we had already advanced on the slope of the mountain in larger forces. The slopes were pre-treated - fired upon by the avalanche service - and we began work. 35 professional rescuers and 15 volunteers worked at the scene of the incident. The bodies of three more people were quickly found.
Rescuers walked in a line. They took half a step, they made an injection with a probe, another half a step - again an injection. The caretakers of the cable cars helped us a lot. At the same time, specialists observed the slope of the mountain from below and from above, - Ruslan Dzhappuev says in turn.
The avalanche was on a wide front, but it cannot be called such a huge one, since there was little snow on the slope. But even this multi-ton mass was enough to cover the freeriders who were descending the slope.
Cynological calculations were involved in the search work. “Dogs work most efficiently in the first few hours, when a person is still alive under the snow,” Dzhappuev explained.
Vladimir and Yana on Cheget. The photo was taken the day before the death. Photo: social networks
- Guys found in one place?
No, the dead were scattered over different heights. Many of them ended up under a two-meter layer of snow, Khadzhiev explains. - The only survivor under the avalanche, a 29-year-old from Nizhny Novgorod, had an avalanche sensor in his pocket. Thanks to this, he was saved.
Another one was lucky: he turned out to be a little higher. If it's not heavily snowed down, oxygen continues to flow for some time, - adds Ruslan Dzhappuev.
As far as I know, foreign freeriders use avalanche pillows, which, when an avalanche descends, work like a lifeline, push a person to the surface ...
This is a very expensive pleasure. It is worth pulling the handle, and a special cartridge with compressed gas will instantly inflate two bags of 150 liters behind the back, - says Albert Khadzhiev. - This ABS backpack was worn by one of the victims. The system worked, but the board still pulled the man down, and he suffocated. The airbag greatly increases the chances of a person caught in an avalanche not to drown in it, but, unfortunately, it does not guarantee one hundred percent that a person can be saved.
Among the dead was a native of Kirov, 30-year-old Oksana Sannikova, who in recent years lived in Nizhny Novgorod. The girl was a master of sports in alpine skiing. Working several seasons at the ski base, she regularly listened to lectures on avalanche safety. As part of the women's team, Oksana became the bronze medalist of the championship and the Cup of Russia in bandy. On the northern slope of Cheget, a young family, Spartak fans Volodya and Yana Shanina, also died.
29-year-old Vladimir Shanin was a football player and midfielder. Played in the amateur league for various teams.
- Is it possible to deal with violating freeriders somehow?
There used to be a control and rescue service, and now there is a high-mountain search and rescue squad, - says Dzhappuev. - Previously, if a person broke the rules, the rescuer caught up with him, took away one ski. The skier had to walk down the mountain.
And now, just a little, they start to complain. Our principle is this: the customer is always right. Previously, before the closure of the cable car, rescuers descended from the mountain, completely examined the slope. Now nobody does it. Nothing can be banned...
They watch videos of foreign extreme sportsmen descending, "cutting" avalanches. And they rush to imitate them. And beforehand, they are written off on the Internet, gather in groups to unite and go down the virgin lands. They need untouched snow, thrills, for them a special buzz is to swim in the snow. They want to leave their mark, where there are no traces of others yet. None of them thinks about the worst, they act, relying on the Russian "maybe". For them, the main thing is to post the appropriate video on the Internet. Adrenaline plays, that's it - let's go! They ride a snowboard for a year or two, and already they think they are aces.
Agree with colleague Albert Khadzhiev:
Despite the terrible tragedy, I think that in two days new extreme sportsmen will ride on unprepared slopes. And the accidents will continue.
While, for example, in Italy, the Public Security Agency sent a bill to the local parliament that would provide for imprisonment for "cutting" an avalanche. For off-piste skiing in avalanche-prone areas, the offender is expected to be fined 5,000 euros.
An avalanche on Mount Cheget in Kabardino-Balkaria killed seven skiers and saved another. How safe is a holiday in the Caucasus mountains today?"Northern Circus"
The avalanche descended from the northern slope of Mount Cheget around noon in the place that the skiers themselves call the "Northern Circus". These are off-piste routes, where skiing is strictly prohibited precisely because of the high avalanche danger.
The winter was snowless, but frosty. But at the end of February (on the 23rd and 26th), heavy snowfalls took place in the Elbrus region, then there was a wind that carried the snow masses accumulated on the slope, and then a sharp warming. All these weather conditions created the conditions for the avalanche to come down.
Judging by the numerous videos that hit the social networks, in just a matter of seconds, she covered a distance of hundreds of meters. For example, Muscovite Alexander Tumashev's friends drove down the couloir of the northern slope literally five minutes before the slope of the avalanche. In a video he posted on Facebook, he can be heard calling his friends and yelling into the phone: “You assholes! Run, there's an avalanche above you! There, two dudes were demolished! ”
ATTENTION! THE VIDEO USES OBSCENSIVE LANGUAGE!
According to eyewitnesses, the height of the separation of the snow cover in the area of the so-called "Chicken Paw" (this is one of the places known to skiers on the ridge that limits the tray of the "Northern Circus") was up to two meters.
The circumstances of the incident will still be investigated by the investigating authorities. But it is already obvious that freeriders went skiing on their own, and without a specially trained and experienced guide. As even the regulars of Cheget admit, this is akin to playing Russian roulette - an avalanche can come down at any second.
The guide, as a rule, allows you to synchronize the skiing of different groups on the same slope. For example, if some skiers (or snowboarders) make a traverse (that is, a fast oblique descent), while others are driving along the upper part of the slope at that moment, then they can provoke an avalanche on those skiing below.
In addition, an experienced guide from among local residents always monitors changes in weather conditions and the movement of snow masses. This means that he knows those areas on the slope where the avalanche danger is highest.
However, most of the skiers who are actively discussing what happened on Cheteg agree on one thing - the dead themselves, who skied in the prohibited zone, are to blame.
Who is more dangerous: extreme sports or "coats"?
Many “coaters” (as experienced skiers contemptuously call beginners) on social networks began to discuss the version that the avalanche service should have fired at the northern slope of Cheget in advance to ensure the dangerous avalanche came down. And since they didn’t fire, it means, they say, they are indirectly to blame for the death of seven skiers ...
Skier Vasily Dobrokhotov categorically disagrees with this: according to him, the tray of the so-called "Northern Circus" is not serviced by an avalanche service at all. After all, this is a zone closed for skiing, and only extreme people ride here, for the sake of which no one will make an expensive shelling of the mountain slopes. A rare exception, according to Dobrokhotov, are cases when large avalanches coming from the northern slope of Cheget can pose a danger to the village of Terskol.
Another Muscovite riding the Cheget, Natalia Rusakova, agrees with Dobrokhotov. “An avalanche service is a federal service with its own tasks and its own budget. Their task is to protect regular residential areas, camp sites, a gas pipeline, roads and so-called “certified” routes under supports from avalanches,” says Rusakova.
This opinion is shared by the vast majority of skiers. They ask not to shift the responsibility for what happened to the avalanche service, and even more so, to the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
Those very "coats" who first appeared on Cheget could be confused by the lack of fences and nets that limit the prohibited skiing areas (as is customary, say, in the Alps). Although there are always warning signs along the trails. But someone may not pay attention to them ... but they will see traces that go beyond the limits of the track. And he will follow them.
At the same time, it is worth noting that there was not a single novice skier among those killed in Cheget. One of them is 29-year-old Muscovite Alexander Ivanov, better known in the extreme crowd as Primus. He rode a motorcycle, and snowboarded, and flew a paraglider ... He left behind a wife and four children, and now familiar athletes have announced a fundraiser to help his family.
Another victim is 30-year-old Oksana Sannikova from Nizhny Novgorod, also a professional athlete (bronze medalist of the Russian Women's Ice Hockey Championship).
Is it possible to secure the slopes of Cheget?
And not only Cheget, but also other Caucasian peaks, chosen by extreme people? Of course, it is impossible to enclose all permitted ski areas with a wall: it is too expensive. But it is quite possible to engage in educational work. Which, according to the skiers themselves, is still not enough.
Vasily Dobrokhotov cites the example of Japan: in the Niseko ski resort (Hokkaido Island), all freeride exits (extreme, off-piste skiing) are closed with special nets in which gates are made. When the avalanche situation allows, these gates are opened by rescuers. The European experience, reminds Dobrokhotov, is different: here, at ski resorts, avalanche flags are hung along the slopes - from yellow to black. So that every rider can voluntarily assess all risks.
Stanislav Radominov from Belgorod is sure that it is impossible to completely exclude the possibility that random people will want to go skiing on dangerous slopes - beginners, with a low level of training, who do not know the terrain, terrain, slope exposure.
Nevertheless, according to Radominov, it is necessary in Terskol hotels every Monday (since most skiers come for an average of a week) to give lectures on avalanche safety, read weather forecasts and snow conditions. In addition, it is at such meetings that beginner skiers can get acquainted with local experienced guides.
Read the rules, save your life!
The Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations for Kabardino-Balkaria after the tragedy on Cheget published an appeal to all tourists. It is worth bringing it in full. After all, the rules are simple, the price of compliance with which is life and health.
“When registering, tourist groups get acquainted with the necessary information about natural hazards on the route, the nearest points of possible emergency communication and hydrological, meteorological conditions in the area of the proposed route.
Tourists must have with them group and personal equipment regarding the safe passage of the route, means of communication and signaling, route and insurance documents, food and medicines.
Rescuers of the EMERCOM of Russia are provided with telephone numbers and addresses of members of tourist groups. During the route, after a certain amount of time, tourists get in touch with the rescuers and provide information in the prescribed manner.
In the event of a disaster on the route, an emergency with a group, tourism organizations, tourists are required to take measures to rescue the victims on their own and send a message about the incident to the rescue service.
After the group leaves the route, but no later than the declared end date of the event, the head of the group is obliged to report this fact to the employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
Today at 12:03 the on-duty shift of the Crisis Management Center of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia for the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic received information that an avalanche had descended in the Elbrus region on the northern slope of Mount Cheget.
From the Editor:Cheget is the unofficial, well-established name of the Caucasus Mountains, with the peaks of Donguz-Orunbashi, 3769 m high, and Azau-Gitche-Cheget-Karabashi, 3461 m high, in the Elbrus region (south of Elbrus), a popular tourist destination and a center for skiing ..
Despite the fact that this section of the mountain was prohibited for skiing, during the avalanche there were up to 10 skiers on it, who made descents along unprepared slopes.
Rescuers of the Elbrus VPSO, consisting of 9 people and 1 piece of equipment, moved forward to provide assistance.
According to information from various sources, four dead (two men and two women) and one injured are confirmed.
From the slope of Mount Cheget, the bodies of the dead were transported to the Cheget base, where they were handed over to law enforcement officers.
The identities of the dead are being established.
In total, eight freeriders took to the slope.
On March 4, it became known that the death toll from an avalanche on Mount Cheget in Kabardino-Balkaria had risen to seven people. This was announced by the head of the press service of the regional department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations Kantemir Berov
According to him, rescuers found "in the avalanche" the bodies of a man and a woman. Berov did not identify the last deceased. He said that the search work had been completed.
According to the testimony of the well-known guide Kirill Anisimov, who saw the avalanche, the wheelers had very little chance of surviving.
"The whole northern circus went down. Yesterday we rode there and it was scary (we went down once). Today we didn’t go up the mountain at all. It was clear that the avalanche danger was at its maximum. First there was snowfall, then snow blew to the north, extreme heat days. We need to analyze better "The whole north was charged. So it was discharged. Even yesterday there was nothing to do there. Today, even more so. Yesterday they poked their head in there (and even then not from the top, they didn’t climb there at all), realized that everything was bad and left quickly through a large avalanche cone ." eyewitnesses of the tragedy reported on social networks.
The famous guide Kirill Anisimov writes about yesterday's avalanche on Cheget:
"Friends, a few thoughts about yesterday's tragedy. First. Let's not blame the avalanche workers, rescuers and everyone who was there at that time. My opinion is that it is very difficult to adequately predict such an avalanche volume, neither the guides I know nor the avalanche workers, to be honest, such did not assume.
Yes, the snow was bad, prolonged cold, little snow, all the last snowfalls with wind, then warming.
Of course, everyone was on the alert, skiing carefully, but nevertheless, over the past two weeks there have been enough incidents with avalanches of various sizes provoked by skiers, but all this was within the forecast and assessment.
Second. Avalanche personnel regularly fired at the slopes, last time after a snowfall, I myself watched it literally 4 days ago, they lowered a small board under the repeater, in general work was conducted.
Third. The circus was not rolled into mounds, but they rode there a lot, every day, including on the sidelines from a chicken paw, and three crosses also passed this season, so to say that everyone who was there at the time of the exit is just idiots, also not possible.
Although I watched the snowboarder Alexander Ivanov for several days and I can say that his riding style was, to put it mildly, inadequate.
I repeat, the avalanche warning sign and the grid at the entrance have been there since the beginning of the season, and no one will take responsibility for opening or closing any zones when the situation improves or worsens.
OUR OFF-PIRE SKIING IS ONLY OUR RESPONSIBILITY!
Do not shift it to rescuers and avalanche services, everyone has their own head on their shoulders, always remember that freeride is dangerous, any authorities and experts can make mistakes or ignore something, it has always been and always will be...
My condolences to all the families and friends of the victims, I hope we will not hear more about the new victims of this avalanche...
Today, rescue work in the northern circus continues, with the help of regional detachments of the Ministry of Emergencies, a request to everyone who is in the Elbrus region to remember this and not to enter the closed zones of the north of Cheget.
Be careful mountains in again showed who is stronger...
However, rescue work is still ongoing, and the exact number of victims has not yet been established.
“Investigators are investigating all the circumstances of the incident. A forensic medical examination of the bodies of the dead has been scheduled.”, - said in the message of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
A similar tragedy occurred on Cheget