Rigopiano avalanche
Rigopiano avalanche | |
| Date | 18 January 2017 |
|---|---|
| Time | 16:48 local time |
| Location | Rigopiano, Abruzzo, Italy |
| Coordinates | 42°25′52″N 13°46′58″E / 42.43111°N 13.78278°E |
| Cause | Earthquakes and/or heavy snowfall |
| Participants | 40 (28 guests, 12 employees) |
| Deaths | 29 |
| Non-fatal injuries | 11 |
| Survivors | 11 |
On the afternoon of 18 January 2017, an avalanche occurred on Gran Sasso d'Italia massif, one of the mountains above Rigopiano, impacting and destroying the four-star Hotel Rigopiano in Farindola, Abruzzo. The disaster killed 29 people and injured 11 others, making it the deadliest avalanche in Italy since the White Friday avalanches in 1916, and the deadliest in Europe since the Galtür avalanche in 1999.
Two factors which contributed to the disaster were a series of earthquakes that struck the region earlier in the day, and record snowfall which occurred in the region over the preceding days.