Kerstin Gurtner, 33, tragically died near the summit of Grossglockner in January.
Kerstin Gurtner, 33, died after her mountaineer boyfriend left her behind on a climb (Image: jung.gemeinsam-trauern.net)
A woman who was tragically “left to freeze to death” near the summit of Austria’s biggest mountain has been pictured for the first time.
Thomas Plamberger, 36, is accused of abandoning 33-year-old Kerstin Gurtner while climbing Grossglockner in January. Kerstin froze to death just 150 ft below the summit in -20°C temperatures after being left “unprotected, exhausted and hypothermic”, prosecutors say.
Plamberger, an experienced mountaineer, faces up to three years behind bars after being charged with manslaughter by gross negligence, with accusations that he was not prepared with an emergency kit and waited hours to contact rescue teams.
Webcam images show lights from the two climbers’ head torches being picked up on the ground as they made their way up the mountain on January 18. Around six hours into the climb, the lights started to dim as the battery gave out, and Kerstin began to struggle.
Kerstin Gurtner, 33 (Image: jung.gemeinsam-trauern.net)
Encouraged by Plamberger to carry on, she attempted to tackle the final stretch of the mountain amid winds of up to 46 mph while wearing only soft snow boots, which are not designed for use in mixed terrain at such high altitudes. The Mirror reports that Kerstin found herself unable to go any further as darkness fell, becoming exhausted, hypothermic, and disoriented.
Plamberger descended the mountain on his own. When he left his partner, reportedly to get help, he apparently did not take her to an area protected from the wind and did not use a bivouac sack or aluminium rescue blankets, prosecutors allege. Rescue teams were unable to reach Kerstin until the following morning as they battled hurricane-force winds, eventually finding her dead beneath the summit cross.
Prosecutors say the couple had started the ascent about two hours late, meaning the climb lasted into the evening, and they did not have any emergency kits with them. Investigators launched a full forensic assessment soon after, scouring phones, sports watches, photos and videos and hearing from alpine hiking experts.
Plamberger, who is being held legally responsible as the ‘guide’ of the climb, is accused of ignoring his partner’s lack of climbing experience and not making the decision to turn back when it got dark. Prosecutors also claim he did not call emergency services promptly enough, saying the pair were stranded from around 8.50pm, but that he remained silent when a police helicopter flew overhead at 10.50pm.
Kerstin described herself online as a ‘winter child’ and a ‘mountain person’ (Image: ung.gemeinsam-trauern.net)
Alpine Police tried repeatedly to contact him, and he finally spoke to an officer at around 12.35am, almost four hours after the pair became stranded. Though the details of that conversation remain unclear, Plamberger did not contact rescue services again after the conversation. He had reportedly put his phone on silent and put it away, not hearing any further calls from police. It wasn’t until 3.30am that he decided to notify rescue services, having left Kerstin alone.
According to prosecutors, Plamberger ‘”turned away” and left his girlfriend. A statement from prosecutors said, “At approximately 2am, the defendant left his girlfriend unprotected, exhausted, hypothermic, and disoriented about 50m below the summit cross of the Grossglockner.
The woman succumbed to frostbite. Since the defendant, unlike his girlfriend, was already well-experienced with alpine high-altitude tours and had planned the tour, he was to be considered the responsible guide of the tour.” They added that Plamberger did not take into account his girlfriend’s lack of experience and that she had never undertaken an alpine high-altitude tour of this length.
Kerstin’s social media accounts show photos of her and Plamberger hiking and climbing together, with captions describing herself as a “winter child” and a “mountain person.” Paying tribute to her online, one friend wrote, “Rest in peace in heaven,” while another added, “Behind the tears of sorrow lies the smile of remembrance.” Someone else penned, “We still think of you so often.”
Through his lawyer, Kurt Jelinek, Plamberger has denied the accusations, insisting he turned away to get help and Kerstin’s death was a “tragic, fateful accident”. Plamberger’s trial is due to begin in February; if convicted, he faces up to three years in prison.”
