5 Skiers Are Killed in Alps Avalanches

Five skiers were killed in a pair of avalanches in the Salzburg Pongau region of western Austria on Saturday, authorities said. Four of them were killed by a snow slide in the Gastein Valley, south of the city of Salzburg, that swept away seven people. Two people were injured—one seriously—and a third escaped unharmed, the APA news agency reported. "This tragedy painfully demonstrates how serious the current avalanche situation is," said Gerhard Kremser, district head of the Pongau mountain rescue service, per the AP, noting the "clear and repeated warnings" about the avalanche risk.

Four rescue helicopters, mountain rescue and Red Cross dog teams, and a crisis intervention team were rushed to the site. About 90 minutes earlier, a female skier died after being buried under an avalanche in the nearby Bad Hofgastein area, at an altitude of about 7,200 feet, APA said. Heavy snowfall contributed to avalanche deaths in the past week or so in the Alps, per the BBC. In France, six skiers were killed last weekend in avalanches in Alpine resorts.