Dutch royals arrive in Austria, prince in critical condition

Feb 18, 2012, 2:28 GMT

Vienna - A delegation of Dutch royalty arrived late Friday in Austria after the second son of Queen Beatrix was injured in an avalanche while skiing in the resort of Lech.

Prince Friso, 43, was resuscitated and brought to a clinic in Innsbruck Fridau afternoon, according to a royal statement. He was in critical condition after being buried by snow for about 20 minutes.

A Dutch government plane flew Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, his wife Princess Maxima and the youngest son of Queen Beatrix, Constantijn, to St Gallen, Switzerland. They then drove by car to Innsbruck, according to the Austrian news agency APA.

'At this moment he is in a stable situation but his life is still in danger,' the family said on its website earlier Friday.

The prince suffered injuries to the head and brain, Austrian public broadcaster ORF said, citing unnamed sources close to the clinic.

Queen Beatrix and the prince's wife, Mabel Wisse Smit, who were also vacationing in the ski resort village of Lech in Western Austria, went to the clinic.

Prince Friso, 43, had been skiing outside the regular slope areas with a friend when the mass of snow hit him, Lech mayor Ludwig Muxel told dpa.

Avalanche experts had put out a high-risk warning in the area.

'That means that avalanches can go off spontaneously,' Muxel told ORF. 'It is of course a special decision whether you go into the free skiing area.'

Rescuers were able to find the prince because he was carrying an avalanche transceiver. His friend was wearing a special air bag designed to lift skiers above the snow.

Prince Friso is no longer part of the royal succession line since he married a commoner.

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