A climber has been found guilty of gross negligent manslaughter after his girlfriend, whom he left behind on Austria‘s highest mountain after encountering some difficulties on their trek, died.
Thomas Plamberger, 37, a chef from Salzburg, received a five-month suspended sentence and was fined 9,400 euros ($15,165) for the death of Kerstin Gurtner, 33, in January of last year.The couple were climbing the Grossglockner in the Austrian Alps, which stands nearly 3,800 metres above sea level, when they ran into trouble.
The prosecution argued that, as the far superior climber, Plamberger was responsible for the couple’s safety.On January 18, 2025, Thomas P and Kerstin G set out on what should have been a demanding but achievable winter climb of 3,798m Grossglockner in the Austrian Alps. Their plan was to ascend the technically challenging Studlgrat Ridge (rated AD, UIAA III–IV in places) and descend the normal route via the Kleinglockner and Adlersruhe huts. The six-kilometer ridge involves roughly 1,000m of vertical gain and is rarely attempted in winter without a guide.
As we reported at the time of the tragedy, the couple left the parking area at 6:45 am, already about two hours later than ideal for winter. Early conditions were manageable, but winds picked up sharply as they gained altitude. By evening, the couple was high in the most exposed section of the ridge. A webcam at Adlersruhe captured their headlamps moving slowly in the darkness.
Other parties had already turned back because of the gathering storm. At around 8:15 pm, they were still pushing upward over the hardest terrain in the dark. Alpine police, alerted by concerned witnesses, tried calling the pair, but the calls went unanswered. A police helicopter flew over twice, once illuminating them with its searchlight. The couple continued climbing and gave no distress signals.
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