Five German climbers died and another was seriously injured after falling 200 metres (650ft) in the Zillertal Alps, Austria. The group was roped together when one slipped, pulling the others down a slope before they landed in a crevasse.
Five rescue helicopters were dispatched to the scene at 2,900 metres above sea level near the Mannlkarscharte pass, close to Krimml. The sole survivor, in his 70s, was airlifted to a hospital in Salzburg, about 80km away.
Anton Voithofer, head of the Red Cross rescue team, suggested a rope may have come loose. The recovery of the bodies was complicated by a heightened risk of rockslides in the area.
Three of the deceased were over 60 years old. This incident is believed to be the deadliest of the season in the Austrian Alps, where several dozen mountaineers die annually.
In separate accidents, three Italian climbers are believed to have died on a glacier in the Ademello Brenta Park near Trento, and another Italian climber died after being hit by rocks in the Valtellina valley near the Swiss border.
