Austrian mountain rescue teams save Russian climbers and Viennese hikers in separate emergencies

Two Russian nationals attempted to climb the Mahdlgupf route in the Gmunden district on July 18, 2026, using a mobile app. They became lost in the rocky terrain, called the European emergency number and were located by an alpine police officer who dispatched a police helicopter and the Steinbach mountain rescue team. The helicopter crew rescued the climbers and landed them safely at a staging area in Steinbach am Attersee.

In a separate incident, five young men from Vienna set out on a demanding trek in the Höllengebirge on the unmarked Hirschlukensteig. After dark fell and without headlamps, they called for help. Bergrettung Ebensee and the Gmunden alpine police responded, providing assistance and escorting the group back to the Langbathsee in Ebensee unharmed after more than eleven hours of exposure.