Australian teenager killed by avalanche in Austria named

Rescuers have told of the heartbreaking trek down the mountain for the family of an Australian teenager killed in an avalanche while skiing in Austria.

Rescuers have told of the heartbreaking moment an Australian family’s European holiday ended in tragedy after a teenage boy was killed while skiing in Austria.

Austrian police confirmed that 16-year-old Max Meyer from Sydney was killed in an avalanche at the ski village in St. Anton am Arlberg on Wednesday.

Local authorities said the teenager was skiing off-piste with his father, 58, mother, 55, and younger brother, 14, in the late afternoon when they became stuck on steep terrain and called for help.

Police said the family was hit by an avalanche as they waited for rescuers to arrive, burying Max and his mother. “The woman was able to free herself from the snow and remained unhurt,” the statement read.

“The avalanche came to a standstill at the bottom of the valley and had a thickness of up to four metres. The 16-year-old son was completely buried by the snow masses.”

Family members were unable to help as they had no emergency supplies or shovel with them. Rescuers retrieved the teenager’s body from beneath two metres of snow about 20 minutes after arriving at the scene, but were unable to revive him.

The father and younger brother were uninjured in the avalanche.

Mountain Rescue team member Kurt Huettl told Nine News it was a “terrible situation for everyone — for the family especially, and also for us because it’s hard to see someone die like that, especially as he’s so young”.

Rescuers had to guide the family out of the treacherous terrain on skis after telling them their son couldn’t be saved.

“We got them out, but it was the hard way out,” Mr Huettl said. “We had to pass some trees and there is a river, there are rocks and so it was difficult to get them out. Sadly we could not bring the young boy out this way, we had to ropes to bring him up.”

An autopsy will determine the exact cause of death. The incident is still the subject of ongoing police investigations.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was aware of reports an Australian had died in Austria.

Max Meyer was a gifted student at Sydney’s International Grammar School. Picture: John Appleyard

A street sign reading ‘danger of avalanches’ on a snow-covered street in Vordernberg, Austria. Picture: Erwin Scheriau/AFP

Workers use heavy machines to clear huge masses of snow from the streets of St. Anton am Arlberg. Picture: Joe Klamar/AFP

At least 17 people have died during heavy snowstorms across Europe this week. Picture: Joe Klamer/AFP

A snow plough truck makes its way on the highway near Kufstein after heavy snowfall in Austria. Picture: Joe Klamar/AFP

The family, a German man and Australian woman and their children, live in Australia. The teenager was a student at Sydney’s International Grammar School in Ultimo.

In a statement sent to news.com.au, Principal Shauna Colnan said the accident was a tragedy for the family and the school.

“It is with deep sadness that I informed our school community yesterday that one of our students has died in an avalanche while skiing with his family,” the statement read.

“Max Meyer, 16, was about to enter Year 11, and his life has tragically been cut short.

“I have spoken with Max’s father and have extended my deepest condolences on behalf of the IGS school community, and offered the family all of our support. We will continue to support the family through the coming days and beyond.”

A teacher of Mr Meyer, who did not want to be named when contacted by news.com.au, described the 16-year-old as a “lovely boy”.

According to Fairfax, Ms Colnan sent an email to parents of the school offering support to students on Thursday evening.

“It is with deep sadness that I write to inform you that one of our students has died in an avalanche while skiing with his family,” she wrote. “The school will be open tomorrow and next week, and senior staff, counsellors and I will be there to assist should you require support.”

At least 17 people have died over the past week in Eastern and Northern Europe from a series of storms that have pummelled the region with snow.

In neighbouring Slovakia, the mountain rescue service said a man, 37, was killed by an avalanche in the Mala Fatra mountains.

A seven-year-old child was killed in Aying, near Munich, by a falling tree. German news agency dpa reported that police believe the tree was weighed down by snow.

Six German teenagers were luckier, emerging alive from an avalanche that engulfed them at the Wildkogel resort in Austria’s Salzburg province.

Several railway lines in the Alps were closed on Thursday as heavy snowfall continued. Trucks and cars were stuck for hours on a highway in southwestern Germany and schools were closed in parts of Bavaria.

Roads into several places were closed — although Galtuer in western Austria, where a massive avalanche in 1999 killed 31 people, was reachable again on Thursday after being cut off.

The Austrian minister responsible for tourism, Elisabeth Koestinger, said that “in most skiing areas, there is no reason for concern at present if people keep to the rules and don’t leave the secured slopes.”

Austrian public broadcaster ORF reported that the weather was expected to calm on Friday but further heavy snow could be expected on Sunday.

In the Czech Republic, around 9000 households were without electricity on Thursday after heavy snow in regions bordering Germany and Austria.

On Norway’s Arctic Svalbard islands, more than 100 people were evacuated as a precaution because of a storm and the risk of avalanches. The Svalbard archipelago is 800 kilometres north of Norway’s mainland.

Norwegian news agency NTB said 29 houses at the foot of the Sukkertoppen mountain were evacuated, and a school, kindergartens, a sports facility and public library closed. In north of the country’s mainland, authorities warned of a risk of avalanches.

The Swedish Meteorological Institute on Thursday sent out warnings for a storm and heavy snowfalls over northern Sweden.