A CLIMBER has been killed after a horror fall caused by an avalanche in Austria.
The 19-year-old German man was reportedly unsecured while on the “Stopselzieher” via ferrata, an “easy” route on the Zugspitze mountain.
The monstrous snowslide dragged him down steep rocky ground and swept him off the peak, according to BILD.
His 21-year-old companion was clipped into a rope with a carabiner and fortunately escaped with his life.
Mountain rescuers rushed to help, but tragically could not save him.
Search dogs later tried to find the buried body in the avalanche debris.
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The climbing duo had already traversed the 7,000ft Wiener Neustädter Hütte peak and were mounting a charge for the summit.
Officials said avalanche danger on Saturday was moderate at higher altitudes in the Tyrol region where the mountain stands.
It was level two on the five point scale and experts had warned that weak layers in the old snow could still be triggered by winter sports fans.
The Zugspitze stands at an impressive 9,718ft, straddles the Austria-Germany border and is the latter’s highest point in the country.
In the last decade, an average of three people a year have died while braving the mountain.
A 34-year-old man died while making a daring solo ascent attempt on the German side last June.
According to Bavarian police, the climber plunged from a great height onto a glacier 1,640ft from the summit.
Three unlucky hikers stumbled upon the body while taking a morning walk.
Officials assume that horrific injuries from the fall resulted in instant death.
The avalanche tragedy follows the deaths of five climbers in the Italian Dolomites last month.
The victims – all German – were climbing Cima Vertana when the devastating snowslide wiped them out on Saturday afternoon.
Among the dead were a man and his 17-year-old daughter.
A group of three was “fully swept away by the avalanche” and all died, with their bodies found on Saturday, according to Italy’s Alpine rescue service.
The Alpine rescue service said that due to fog and low visibility, helicopters could not take off at first light on Sunday.
Once conditions improved, however, rescuers and avalanche dog units were airlifted up into the mountains before setting out on foot.
By late morning on Sunday, the bodies of the two missing mountaineers – the father and daughter – were found.
Two men from a third party survived a run-in with the avalanche and were taken by helicopter to a hospital in the nearby city of Bolzano.
The avalanche struck at around 4pm and at an altitude of more than 11,500ft.