Three people died and another was injured Sunday in an avalanche in Zermatt, one of Switzerland’s most popular ski and mountaineering resorts, Valais cantonal police said.
“Riffelberg Avalanche – at the start of the evening, the event resulted in three people dead and one injured. The search was suspended this evening“, the police said in a message on the social network X.
The large snow slide, according to video images broadcast in particular on Significant relief resources, including air, were immediately deployed to try to help the victims.
Heavy snowfall and very strong winds have prompted authorities to warn of a significant risk of avalanches in the Alpine regions of southern Switzerland.
This Easter Monday, the danger was great in certain parts of the canton of Graubünden and that of Valais. “Very large, and sometimes extremely large, spontaneous avalanches are expected.“, indicated the Institute for the Study of Snow and Avalanches (SLF).
This winter, fourteen people, most of them cross-country skiers, had already lost their lives in avalanches in Switzerland, according to the report published on March 27 by the SLF.
