Campaign: Safe mountain hiking

Hiking continues to be in vogue. According to the Sport Switzerland survey, the number of people who report hiking and/or mountain walking as sports they practice increased from 37 to 44 percent of the population between 2008 and 2014. Hikers collectively spend over 160 million hours on the move.

However, the popularity of this sport also has its downside: According to statistics from the bfu - Swiss Council for Accident Prevention, around 20,000 people resident in Switzerland are injured every year while hiking and mountain walking, almost 40 of them fatally. The most common injuries occur because hikers trip or slip and fall. The risk of falling is particularly high in exposed and slippery places - such as in wet conditions, on old snowfields and ice - as well as when descending.

Every hike requires a high degree of personal responsibility and an awareness of dangers. Hikers can reduce the risk of falling with targeted behavior. The campaign "Mountain Hiking - but Safe" provides the necessary knowledge regarding possible risks and shows the correct behavior when hiking in the mountains. Mountain hikers are advised to concentrate in exposed places, to pay attention to the path and to place their feet safely and deliberately. Likewise, one should not be distracted in such places. If there are railings, ropes, chains or the like, one should hold on to them.

The "Mountain Hiking - But Safe" campaign was launched in 2013 and was originally planned to run for three years. It is now being extended for another three years and is focusing on what to do in the event of a fall. The campaign sponsors are the bfu, the Swiss Hiking Trails and Cable Cars Switzerland. From 2016, the health organization SWICA will support the campaign as the main sponsor. Hikers are addressed directly in the mountain hiking area with posters, flyers and energy bars; the website www.sicher-bergwandern.ch offers in-depth information and a safety quiz to analyze your own risk behavior.

(Source: BFU)