OFFICE INTERLAKEN Untere Bönigstrasse 3800 Interlaken

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A well-rehearsed team: Group leader Andreas Kaufmann and the eight-year-old Labrador Retriever Joy.

equipped with ski boots, skis and backpack, to be picked up by the helicopter. Ideally, dog handlers work at their place of residence. „In winter I always have Joy with me when I am working“ says Kaufmann, who is responsible for winter services and the hiking trail network at the Grindelwald municipality. Even after 18 years as a dog handler, Kaufmann is nervous about every mission: „You never know what to expect on the ground.“ The most important goal, he says, is to save lives. Together with other trained rescuers, every effort is made to rescue anyone buried in an avalanche. The dog handler explains that „The first 15 minutes are the most important, after that the probability of survival decreases rapidly.” Dogs can smell human scent through several metres of snow. If buried people cannot be located with technical aids such as avalanche beacons or Recco, dogs are often their only chance of being found. Which is why the dog‘s good nose is still indispensable in a today‘s rescue.

„Others play golf“

However, sometimes all help comes too late and victims buried are either recovered dead or die on the way to hospital. Fortunately this doesn‘t happen very often, but it is still part of the dog handler’s daily routine. „It is important to talk about your feelings with your team colleagues and family“ says Kaufmann. The good team spirit amongst the rescuers is central for him and, of course, the joy with the animal. „A good bond is the be-all and end-all for every dog handler“ Kaufmann emphasises. „I am grateful when I see that the dog is successful and that the great effort given at a young age has paid off“ says the 51-year-old man who has already trained his second avalanche dog named Joy. He says it is important to be patient and spend a lot of time with the dog. „That is not always easy for my family“ Kaufmann explains. He recalls that once on the way to the graduation party

Labrador Retriever Joy looking for avalanche victims. BELOW

of one of his three children, he had to turn around because he had been called to a mission. As a dog handler, he says, you have to make sacrifices; a dog is a time-consuming hobby. „Others go golfing“ Kaufmann says with a smile. However, there are many things that compensate him for the great effort: „When all the people involved come home healthy after a mission, that is one of the most beautiful moments for me“ Kaufmann explains and pats Joy lovingly on the back when he discovers another object in the snow.

Text: Heidi Schwaiger Photos: Michael Ackermann

HOW TO BECOME A DOG HANDLER

If you are interested in avalanche dog handler training then you have to invest a lot of time. Ideally the training starts when the dog is still a puppy, because the requirements for the entry test are high - the dog must obey commands with and without a leash and, among other things, stay put with other dogs when the owner moves away. Once this hurdle has been cleared, two winters follow with up to ten training days and several exercises such as the one on Kleine Scheidegg. Here the dog is introduced to searching in the snow in a playful way; first the dog searches for the owner in a snow cave, and in the next step this cave is closed with snow. Then a stranger is added. These procedures are practised again and again. At the end, the dog should be able to smell a stranger and objects in the snow and dig for it. Every year qualified dog handlers also attend further training and exercises. Operations are financially compensated, but exercises are not.

Particularly suitable for training are dogs that are willing to work, are people-friendly and are no older than four years. The owners must be active alpinists - the missions take place in deep snow and in alpine terrain so touring skis and skins are always with them.

«BETTER ONE CHARGE MORE THAN ONE LESS»

Peter Bühler knows the Schilthorn area like the back of his hand: For 20 years he has been head of winter sports and, since 2011 he has also been head of ski slopes and rescue services at Piz Gloria. He particularly likes days with lots of fresh snow - then the 60-year-old and his team tackle the steep slopes with explosives.

Peter Bühler, what does it take for guests to know that the ski slopes are safe on the Schilthorn? Enough snow, good slope preparation, markings and the necessary safety measures against avalanches. We constantly monitor the snow situation and want to be sure that nothing happens.

What does a typical working day look like for you? During the winter season I‘m on the go from 6.30 AM with the first check being the quantity of snow in Mürren. Then I look at the data from the other measuring and wind stations in the area on the computer, and based on this information, I decide which lifts can be opened. I meet with the team at 7:30 AM, after which control runs take place in the area. As soon as the slopes are open, I take care of the routine work, such as mending fences or shovelling snow.

What is different when there is fresh snow? When there is a lot of snow, we have time, that‘s the most practical thing. (grins) Then we prepare the hand and helicopter blasts. When there is up to 30 centimetres of new snow without wind then this is not the case and only the slopes need to be prepared again.

Why does it become critical with 30 centimetres of new snow? Just as important as the amount of new snow are the general conditions such as wind strength and temperatures. If large snowdrifts have formed with the fresh snow and there are already delicate sub-layers, critical avalanche situations can arise. In addition, some of the terrain on the Schilthorn is very steep; we blast here on up to 25 days per winter season, which is more often than is necessary in other ski areas. In total, we need about 1.5 tonnes of explosives per season.

How do the blasting operations work? First, together with my deputy Toni von Allmen, we decide whether blasting is necessary and how it should be done. If flight conditions are favourable we will blast from the helicopter. The explosive device is primed and charged in the helicopter then dropped before it detonates. Ideally, the shock wave of the detonation triggers an avalanche.

On the Schwarzgrat, near Birg, there are three fixed explosive masts that we can trigger from Mürren by radio. There are three more blasting masts located in the Blattwang/Kanonenrohr area and we also have two blasting cableways. Often we are out on skis to carry out avalanche blasting by hand.

Do things sometimes go wrong? Normally, blasting is not dangerous, but it does require intuition and experience and, you should be on the ball, especially when blasting by hand in the terrain when visibility is not optimal. It is important not to put yourself in danger. What can happen, is that the explosive device does not detonate and then we have to collect it again after a 15-minute wait. We keep a log in order to track all of the blasts made.

Have the demands on safety increased in recent decades? In the past, the ski area tended to be closed on tricky days and there was less blasting. In connection with snow there is always a residual risk. However, today it is expected that

Necessary for a detonation: Detonator (left), fuse and explosives (right)

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nothing will happen. Avalanche accidents on the slopes are fortunately very rare. In any case, for us, safety comes first. We would rather use one explosive charge more than one less.

What motivates you to get into your ski boots almost every day? The first run in the morning! (laughs) Seriously, it‘s important to me that the conditions on the Schilthorn are as good as possible and that the guests enjoy skiing. I love the surroundings up here, I appreciate my 44-member team, I like to be outside and I prefer manual labour. There is always something to do, also on nice days; then there is time for the office work, which has to be done as well.

«IN THE MORNING, I NEVER KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN»

As a piste patroller, Nina Garbani looks after material and people: on the one hand, she ensures that the ski slopes are safe in the First ski area, and on the other hand she provides first aid in the event of emergency calls. On peak days the Grindelwald native and her team can be called out up to eight times.

Twenty-five minutes in the gondola - that is how Nina Garbani‘s working day begins. From Grindelwald, the 41-year-old takes the first cable car up to the First at 2168 metres. „Here I can already get a first impression of the conditions in the area,“ explains the dark-blond woman. Arriving at the „headquarters“ of the piste service/SOS, situated under the restaurant terrace on the First, Nina Garbani and her team colleagues begin by discussing the situation. Visibility, wind, temperatures and the amount of fresh snow are all factors which influence her working day as a piste patroller. Afterwards they go on a control tour. „We put up arrow nets and check the signalling along the piste,“ explains Nina Garbani, who is always equipped with skis, a rescue backpack and a radio.

Always on the alert

As soon as the ski area is open, then things can start at any time, as in the event of an emergency call in the First area, in which case Nina Garbani and her team are alerted. „In the morning I never know quite what‘s going to happen. That is the exciting thing about the job,“ says the native of Grindelwald, who has been working as a piste patroller for the past eleven years. She arrives at the scene of an accident by snowmobile or skis and decides what to do depending on the situation. As Nina Garbani reports, „We experience the whole range - from people who are weak and need a little support to serious medical problems such as heart attacks or very serious accidents. It is important that the people are well looked after; for example, with a warming blanket or with reassuring words.“ Depending on the severity of the injury, first aid is administered and the injured person is evacuated by rescue sledge or helicopter. It is essential to react quickly and keep a cool head which is no problem for the trained nurse and mother of two, who with her family, runs the Berghotel Faul-