A significant rescue mission was initiated on a Swiss mountain when a skier discovered a young boy trapped beneath an avalanche. While skiing in Engelberg, Matteo Zilla noticed a waving arm and promptly halted to offer assistance. Through a video shared on social platforms, the 37-year-old creative director can be seen approaching the individual buried under fresh snow and clearing his airways.
With the help of fellow skiers, Matteo assured the trapped boy that they would extricate him. Their prompt actions led to the successful rescue of the buried skier, as Matteo recounted on Instagram: “We freed him, and fortunately, there were no adverse outcomes.”
Providing additional insights on social media, Matteo recounted his initial assumption that the person had misplaced their skis, recalling a man struggling to ascend without them. However, upon closer inspection, he realized the individual was completely buried under the snow.
He elaborated: “We were skiing in Engelberg on a powder day. It was snowing, and we received approximately 40 to 50 centimeters of fresh powder. I spotted a person in the distance attempting to ascend without skis, so I presumed they had lost them and descended to aid in the search.”
“Subsequently, I noticed a foot protruding from the snow. I swiftly approached, swept away the snow covering his face and mouth, and communicated with him to assess any injuries. It was determined that he was unharmed, and we methodically cleared the remaining snow from his body.”
“We discovered that he had been skiing downhill, overlooked some small bushes, and tumbled into the snow. While my emotions were intense, they were secondary. The paramount concern was preserving his life.”
Snow avalanches claim an average of 100 lives annually in Europe, according to the European Avalanche Warning Services. During the 2024/2025 season, there were 70 reported fatalities, with 20 in Switzerland, 21 in France, 11 in Italy, and eight in Austria.
In December 2024, Swiss Olympic snowboarder Sophie Hediger, a member of the national snowboard cross team, tragically perished in an avalanche at the age of 26. Sophie, who represented Switzerland in the 2022 Winter Olympics and aspired to participate in the 2026 Games in Italy, was caught in the incident at the Arosa mountain resort.
In April of the same year, at least three individuals, including a 15-year-old, lost their lives in an avalanche in Zermatt, situated in the southern canton of Valais. A fourth person sustained injuries and was airlifted to a nearby medical facility. Valais police confirmed on Twitter that “multiple individuals were swept away” by the avalanche on Easter Monday around 2 pm, resulting in the tragic deaths of three individuals, including a teenager, and injuries to another.