A Kuwaiti tourist who wanted to show his children snow for the first time slipped up when he drove his luxury hire car straight onto a ski piste in Bavaria, southern Germany.
Baffled skiers found the stranded top-of-the-range BMW 7 series abandoned in the middle of the slope at Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
Police eventually tracked it down to a wealthy family of five from the desert kingdom of Kuwait. They were visiting the resort on a day trip from Munich.
A fire crew and towing equipment was needed to remove the vehicle.
‘The father wanted to show his children snow, which they had never seen before,’ said a police spokesman.
‘Unfortunately he drove as far as he could up a forest footpath and then lost control and slid sideways on to the piste.
‘It is a miracle that no damage was done. If it had entered the piste just a few minutes earlier the car would have slipped right down the slope as it was much steeper.
‘The car would have lost grip and slid out of control and the consequences would have been much worse.’
The spokesman said the family ’were very lucky that they managed to escape without injury’.
‘It was a very thoughtless thing to do,’ he added. ‘The driver’s actions put his family’s lives at risk and endangered other skiers.’
Officials say the family will be charged the full cost of the rescue by firefighters, nearly $4500.
