Marmolada collapse, Cainelli (Alpine Rescue): “Maybe we won’t recover missing people”

The collapse on the Marmolada “a river of ice, stones and rocks” which left no way out and which “now makes it difficult to operate safely”. Walter Cainelli, president of the Trentino Alpine Rescue, was among the first to arrive yesterday on the Marmolada due to an alarm triggered as an “avalanche” but which soon took on the dimensions of the tragedy: snow can create air bubbles, boulders and ice instead are a meat grinder. “We got to work asking for the help of all the Corps, they started flying over the area up to ten helicopters, but only later did we really understand the extent of the people involved”, he explains to Adnkronos. “We immediately recovered the dead and injured on the surface, then we searched with sight and hearing, then seven canine units and a sort of sonar that can pick up the electronic instruments that send back signals (cell phones) went into action even if Some of the victims were in ropes but following the rope we also recovered who was lower down and was overwhelmed by hikers “, says the expert who still does not stop working today. “Only when the number to report the missing was activated did we really understand what the final number of victims could be. It will be difficult to recover them because doing so puts the rescuers in danger; the only way is to fly over the area with drones and with helicopters descend from above and attempt to recover the remains “. No one adds the number of missing to the victims, but those who know the mountain know that only a miracle could restore someone still alive. And that continuing the search – given that a block more than a building has remained ‘suspended’ and risks collapse – would be too risky for the rescuers. “I am sorry to tell the relatives of the missing that we may not be able to recover their loved ones”, but it is a risk that is only valid in an attempt to save lives. If Cainelli appreciated the proximity of the Prime Minister, Mario Draghi – who recognized the work of the rescuers and clung to the families of the victims – he is wary of those who pretend to be an expert on social media. “We are talking about a summit glacier and such a thing was unpredictable. I have no memory of a similar tragedy in the Alps,” he concludes.