A Sergeant assigned to Vicenza, Italy, died in an off-duty hiking mishap 19 September 2020 in Valli del Pasubio, Italy. The Soldier was hiking on the Road of 52 Tunnels trail with another Soldier when he stopped to pose for a picture and fell approximately 300 meters through steep and rocky terrain. When the other Soldier could not locate or communicate with the fallen Soldier, he coordinated a medical evacuation with the assistance of an Italian guide. Italian medical personnel made multiple attempts in difficult terrain to retrieve the Soldier before finally evacuating him to a local hospital. While en route, the on-board MEDEVAC physician pronounced the Soldier dead. The mishap is under investigation.

Since FY16, the Army has lost an average of five Soldiers a year to off-duty sports, recreation and physical training mishaps. This tragedy was the third fatal off-duty sports, recreation and physical training mishap of FY20 and below the number of fatalities from this time last year.

The Road of 52 Tunnels was built during World War I by the Italian Army. Back then, it was designated for mules, which carried equipment and supplies to the Italian front lines. The road is situated in northern Italy and is a popular hiking trail.


Hiking Safety Tips:

1. Consult a park ranger.
When deciding where to hike, your best bet is typically going to be a national or state park. They're staffed by rangers with a wealth of information about what you need to stay safe in that particular location. Give the park office a call before your hike, visit the official National Park Service (NPS) site or stop by the office before you leave the trailhead.

2. Agree on an emergency plan.
Part of your plan for any hike should be what you're going to do in an emergency situation. Before heading out, know how you will call or send for help in the unlikely event something bad happens.

These are the key questions your plan needs to answer:

-Will there be reliable cell service? Is someone bringing a fully charged phone and a portable charger? If not, is someone bringing a personal locator beacon, satellite messaging device that can get emergency messages out by pinging satellites with your GPS data, or satellite phone?
-If there's an emergency, does the park have its own emergency number, or should you call
911?
-If you can't transmit a message, which one of you will volunteer to get help?

3. Stay on the trail.
For the sake of your own safety, the natural resources, other hikers and a potential search party, it is paramount that you stay on that trail. Your odds of encountering a risky obstacle go up when you step off the path. It's also easy to get turned around. Veering off the trail also leads to what rangers call "social trails," or unofficial routes carved into the wilderness by wayward hikers. Social trails can trample vegetation, disturb animals, cause erosion and endanger hikers after you who might think it's the right way.

4. Go for a small trial hike before taking on a major one.
Some things are hard to figure out until you're actually out there. Go for a modest hike before a major one, especially if you're new to hiking. A modest hike allows you to shake out your gear, feel out the weight of your pack, break in your boots, and figure out how much food and water you consume as an individual.

5. Be extra careful on the second half of the hike.
The second half of a trip or the end of the day is usually when accidents like falls, slips and trips happen. Your energy levels are lower, your leg muscles are fatigued and your mind might be more focused on getting to the finish than the next step. Take your time and be extra careful with your footing.

6. Be ready to turn back.
You can look at a map and talk to folks all day. But when the rubber meets the road and you have to make decisions, you've got to be willing to turn around. You're more likely to make a poor judgment call — ignoring signs your body needs a break, pushing a straggler to keep up, pressing on when a storm rolls in — when you're hyper-focused on getting to an endpoint. You'll find it easier to be flexible if you keep in mind an objective besides the summit, literally or metaphorically.

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