The following information is courtesy of Swiss Alpine Club President, and UIAA Management Committee member, Françoise Jaquet.
A detailed overview on our actions and communication can be found on the SAC website
https://www.sac-cas.ch/fr/le-cas/les-cabanes-du-cas-restent-fermees-23205/
https://www.sac-cas.ch/en/the-sac/sac-huts-remain-closed-23205/
Since March 2 and throughout the evolution of the recommendations of the Federal Council and the Federal Office of Public Health, we informed regularly the section presidents by dedicated letters and our members by communication on our website.
On March 13 we created a crisis task force dedicated to the COVID-19 situation. Our first meeting of the crisis task force was still “live”, but all other meetings took place by videoconference.
On March 13, we made the recommendation to all our sections to close the mountains huts and to cancel all activities of the sections. On the side of the central office, all training courses, as well as all competitions of ski-mountaineering and sport climbing, were cancelled until end of April. On March 16, we confirmed the recommendations made on March 13 and extended them to end of May. The cancellation of competition events was also extended to end of May.
On the same day (March 16), the Federal Council issued a new decree allowing no more than 5 people to meet together and forbidding outdoor activities, as well as asking people to stay at home as much as possible. This translated into the obligation for the sections to cancel all their activities and for the mountain guides to stop their work.
On March 17, the office in Bern was closed. Since then, the office is still working, but collaborators are working from home. Only a few collaborators come to the office from time to time, if needed. The recommendations of the Federal Office of Public Health on social distance and hand washing and desinfection are followed at all times.
On March 20, we made an appeal to our members and to all mountaineers to refrain from mountain activities in order to avoid unnecessary burden on rescue teams and hospitals.
Since March 17, communication between collaborators of the office, members of the board, members of the crisis task force take place by video conference. The March Board meeting also took place by videoconference.
Thanks to all these actions and measures, the CAS is contributing to the efforts of the Swiss people to reduce the propagation of the corona virus and stop the growth of the pandemic.
