Mountain Tragedy: Hiker Dies in Trentino

An 80-year-old hiker, a resident of Schio in the province of Vicenza, was found dead early Wednesday afternoon near the Canalone via ferrata in Val Canali, in the Pale di San Martino range of the Trentino Dolomites.

The call to the Single Emergency Number 112 was made around 2:00 p.m. by a group of hikers who were already on the via ferrata and noticed the man standing motionless at the base of the equipped route.

The Unified Emergency Center dispatched a rescue helicopter to the scene and alerted the Primiero Mountain and Cave Rescue Station to provide ground support for the operation.

Once the hiker’s body was located a short distance from the start of the via ferrata, the medical team that disembarked from the helicopter could unfortunately only confirm his death. The operation involved the helicopter rescue team and the Trentino Alpine and Speleological Rescue Service of Primiero, which deployed four rescuers at the landing zone to support the operations. The body was recovered using a winch and transported to Fiera di Primiero, where it was handed over to the Guardia di Finanza for the standard investigation.