NCJ Number
132521
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 36 Issue: 5 Dated: (September 1991) Pages: 1469-1473
Date Published
1991
Length
5 pages
Annotation
The reconstruction of glacier accidents by geological inference from the site of discovery is presented in three exemplary cases that occurred on Tyrolean glaciers (Austria) during the past 40 years.
Abstract
In the first case two corpses were discovered close to the equilibrium line in the accumulation area after only 25 years. The two victims had fallen down a rock face after breaking a cornice and had come to rest in the uppermost part of the accumulation area. In the second case, a victim was discovered in the lower ablation area 8 years after falling down a crevasse in the middle part of the ablation area. A female alpinist in the third example was discovered at the very end of the glacier after 29 years, not at the terminus of the glacier. The accident was thought to have happened in the accumulation area. Of particular interest is the fact that two alpinists who accompanied this victim, who were also reported missing, have not yet been found. In addition to knowing the time since death, it is essential to know that bodies deposited or immersed on or inside a glacier are transported downhill along the flow line which explains why the sites of the accident and the site of discovery do not coincide. 2 figures and 4 references (Author abstract modified)