Stranded because of exhaustion while high-altitude mountaineering in the Swiss Alps: a retrospective nationwide study

Abstract

Fortunately, fatal accidents while high-altitude mountaineering have decreased in recent years, but the number of emergencies has increased. These nonfatal emergencies might represent situations where alpinists are stranded (emergencies in which alpinists are no longer able to continue their tour on their own because of, for example, exhaustion, equipment problems, or weather). We analyzed 4596 cases of high-altitude-mountaineering emergencies in the period 2009 to 2020 from the SAC (Swiss Alpine Club) emergency registry. In total, 1951 cases (41.6%) were due to being stranded, 1348 cases were due to falls (28.7%), and 352 cases were due to illness (7.5%); these were the three most common classes. In cases of being stranded, 90% of alpinists were uninjured or not seriously injured. In addition, we found only eight fatal cases. More than 50% of cases occurred while ascending a summit above 4000 m. The main causes of becoming stranded were exhaustion and weather changes. These findings suggest that alpinists contact rescue organizations before experiencing serious troubles; these situations thus present risks and dangers both to those stranded and to emergency services. Since exhaustion and weather changes are the two main causes, adequate preparation and tour planning may help prevent such emergencies.