ITALIAN alpine rescuers say three skiers have been killed in an avalanche in the northern Italian Alps that injured another five people.
Milan Walter of the national alpine rescue corps says the group was back-country skiing on virgin snow when the avalanche was triggered at Plan de la Gabba. There was no word on their nationalities.
Walter said three skiers were seriously injured and transported by helicopter to Aosta while two others were lightly injured.
Another avalanche that hit about the same time in Colle San Carlo involved two skiers, but Mr Walter said neither needed rescue.
The accident comes over a month after a huge avalanche killed 25 people after destroying a hotel in Italy’s Gran Sasso national park.
The January 18 avalanche struck the Hotel Rigopiano in the wake of heavy snow storms and a flurry of powerful earthquakes.
Meanwhile, last month four snowboarders died in an avalanche in the French Alps.
The victims, all reportedly French, were walking in an off-piste area of the resort of Tignes when they were hit by a massive wall of snow. Images from the scene showed dozens of people with poles searching for survivors.
Online Source: The News
