It was 10 ° C at this top of the Italian Alps a few hours before the collapse of tons of ice and rocks on Sunday. Six people died, eight others were injured and at least fifteen are missing.
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The partial breakdown of the Marmolada glacier, Sunday July 3, quickly went around the Italian social networks. Filmed from a neighboring refuge, the images show tons of ice and rocks pouring into a frightening crash towards the valley, taking everything in their path. Alpine rescuers have measured a landslide of almost 300 km/h.
The Marmolada Glacier has broken down at one of the Sopes of the Massif, the Punta Rocca, located at 3,309 meters above sea level, along a route regularly taken by hikers. At least two ropes were on the glacier at the time of the drama, which explains the heavy provisional assessment: at least six dead and eight injured.
Located at the borders of the Trentino-Haut-Adige and Veneto regions, nicknamed “the Queen of Dolomites”, the Marmolada is the culmination of this Massif in the North of the Peninsula, and one of the hikes of hiking The most popular in Italy. On the north face, where the glacier is located, the exceptionally high temperatures of recent weeks have helped to accelerate the melting of permafrost, a real “cement” of the mountain.
murderous avalanche
Some did not fail to criticize the recklessness of hikers who did not hesitate to venture on increasingly unstable ice. “With global warming, and especially the high temperatures of recent weeks, the ice becomes very fine in places, it is no longer the glacier of fifty years ago,” commented on the Rai the mountaineer Reinhold Messner, born a few kilometers from the Marmolada and world known to be the first man to have climbed the fourteen peaks over 8,000 meters.
According to him, it is an accumulation of water under the glacier which could cause the rupture of the serac and trigger the murderous avalanche. The images of the disaster show immense liquid quantities, more than compact ice blocks.
Video | Il Distacco dell’ampio Blocco di ghiaccio sulla marmolada if Sarebbe Verificato nei pressi d Punta Rocca,… https://t.co/qbeysznpd6
“There are times when the danger increases and, with him, the probability of a collapse, explained for his part the glaciologist Massimo Frezzotti in an interview with the Ansa news agency. If we consider Glaciers like frozen rivers flowing in the valley, it is clear that hiking in such conditions is not prudent. “
dispatched to the scene of the disaster, civil protection warned on other risks of breaking the glacier due to the strong temperatures: it was 10 ° C at the top of the Marmolada a few hours before the collapse of tons of water ice and rocks.
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