Ski accidents in the Czech mountains: mountain rescue, emergency numbers and insurance in the Krkonoše

We are not doctors or rescuers, so you will not find advice here on treating a specific injury. Instead, we have summarised what the Czech Mountain Rescue Service (Horská služba ČR), the medical emergency service, the fire and rescue service, the Czech Ministry of the Interior and the bodies handling foreign visitors’ health insurance say about emergency calls, call-outs and insurance. The information is as of September 2026. In an emergency, always follow the dispatcher’s instructions.

Emergency numbers in the Czech mountains

• 112: the European emergency number. According to the Czech fire and rescue service, it works even without credit or a SIM card, and operators take calls in English and German, some in other languages too.
• 155: medical emergency service. According to the Czech Health Insurance Bureau, operators usually speak only Czech.
• +420 1210: Czech Mountain Rescue Service, emergency line around the clock.
• 150: fire service, 158: police.

What to do if someone is injured on the slope

Under the rules of the International Ski Federation (FIS), which the Mountain Rescue Service also publishes, every skier and snowboarder must give first aid in the event of an accident. Every witness and everyone involved, responsible or not, must also give their personal details. The Ministry of the Interior and the medical emergency service sum up the first steps like this:

• Mark the spot: stick crossed skis into the snow above the injured person so that others see them in time.
• Call for help: 155 or 112, or mountain rescue on +420 1210 in mountain terrain. If you can, call from next to the injured person.
• Say where you are, who needs help and what happened. Describe what you see rather than what you think, and answer the dispatcher’s questions.
• On a piste, describe the location as precisely as you can: the ski area, the name of the piste and what is around you.
• After the call, follow the dispatcher’s instructions and stay with the injured person. If their condition gets worse, call again.

The Záchranka app

Záchranka is a free Czech emergency app that the Mountain Rescue Service also works with. After you press the SOS button, it asks whether medical help is needed. If you choose 155, it sends an emergency message with your exact location and profile details to the ambulance dispatch centre and then offers a call that you must confirm. According to the Mountain Rescue Service, the app uses GPS to tell that you are in the mountains and alerts the local mountain rescuers too. A separate mountain rescue button sends your location to them and dials 1210 at the same time.

Who pays for a call-out?

The Czech Mountain Rescue Service is a public benefit company founded by the Ministry for Regional Development and funded by grants from the ministry and the regions. It carries out searches and rescues, gives first aid, transports the injured and patrols the ridges and pistes. In its leaflet for foreign visitors, however, it points out that it is not a healthcare provider. International agreements on free healthcare therefore do not apply to its call-outs, and foreign visitors receive an invoice based on the price list published at horskasluzba.cz. Rescuers do not take cash on the spot.

The ambulance service and hospitals work differently. According to the Czech Health Insurance Bureau, visitors insured in the EU, the EEA, Switzerland or the UK who show a European Health Insurance Card or a provisional replacement certificate are entitled to necessary care from doctors and hospitals that have a contract with a Czech health insurance fund, which most do. Transport to hospital is free, but you must show the card to the crew. A regulatory fee is charged at out-of-hours emergency clinics, and without the card a doctor may ask you to pay upfront.

What insurance to take out

The Mountain Rescue Service stresses that the EHIC is no substitute for travel insurance and does not cover private healthcare. It recommends commercial travel health insurance that covers any of its call-outs, not just injuries but also searches and transport. The health insurance bodies of neighbouring countries say the same:

• Germany: the DVKA leaflet on holidays in the Czech Republic says mountain rescue costs are borne in full by the patient and statutory insurance does not pay for transport home, so it recommends private travel health insurance.
• Poland: the National Health Fund (NFZ) lists mountain rescue among the services you pay for in the Czech Republic and says transport back to Poland is paid in full by the patient.
• Before you go, check that your policy explicitly covers skiing, mountain rescue, searches and repatriation.

Prevention: correctly set bindings and gear that fits

The Czech Ministry of the Interior names bindings not set to a skier’s ability and weight as one cause of accidents. It recommends having bindings set and edges sharpened by a professional, skiing within your ability and avoiding alcohol while skiing. We explain how bindings are set in a separate article.

At our rental in Vrchlabí, we choose ski length by height, weight and experience and set the bindings to your weight. Every item is checked, sharpened and waxed after it comes back. We also rent helmets and goggles separately, so you can add them to your own skis.

Ski and helmet rental in Vrchlabí

Book your gear online