Rescuers are searching for two missing people after an avalanche swept across ski slopes in western Austria on Sunday, German news agency dpa reported.
Au départ, jusqu’à 10 personnes étaient portées disparues sur la base d’une video d’un témoin, mais huit ont été identifiées et ne craignent plus d’être enterrées, a rapporté dpa, citant un porte-parole de l’equipe comfort.
About 200 rescuers inspect the site of an avalanche near the town of Zuiris.
The avalanche occurred around 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET) on the 2,700-meter (nearly 9,000 ft) Trittkopf mountain between Zuers and Lech am Arlberg, and the snowfall reached nearby ski slopes.
The avalanche came after days of snowfall in the high mountain region and unusually warm weather on Christmas Day, the Austrian News Agency, citing local police, reported. The agency added that helicopters and search teams were deployed after the avalanche.
“We are doing everything we can to save the winter sports lovers,” a municipal official from Lech was quoted by the Apa news agency as saying.
The local mountain rescue service has rated the avalanche risk as “high”.
Officials said the person could recover quickly. Searchlights were placed on the snowpack to continue searching after dark and dogs were used to try and track.
The resort website said the ski area is closed as of 5pm local time (11am ET) on Sunday and there will be a ski update at 8am (2am ET) on Monday. A spokesperson for the station could not immediately be reached for comment.
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