Horror on the slopes as skiers swept away in avalanche at Italian resort

An avalanche struck Val Veny, part of the Courmayeur resort in northern Italy, at around 11am on Sunday with three people reportedly skiing off-piste when disaster struck

An avalanche has engulfed three people at a ski resort. Disaster struck at Val Veny, a section of the Courmayeur resort in northern Italy, around 11am CET (10am GMT) on Sunday.

Reports suggest that the trio were skiing off-piste. Rescue teams from the Aosta Valley and the Guardia di Finanza are currently on site attempting to rescue them.

Rescue efforts are being conducted from three helicopters surveying the area, as well as on the ground using mobile phone signals and an avalanche rescue transceiver, according to La Repubblica.

Today, the Aosta Valley is under a level three avalanche warning on a scale of one to five. “The old wind-packed snow accumulations can release spontaneously or from the passage of a single winter sports enthusiast,” warned AINEVA, the association that issues avalanche warnings.

It comes after two British men are among three skiers who died after an avalanche struck the Val d’Isere ski resort in the French Alps.

The snowslide hit the village in southeastern France at around 11.30am (10.30am UK time) on Friday, according to Sky News.

The third victim was a French national who was skiing alone high up on the mountain slope ‌when he was swept away, according to Cedric Bonnevie, a spokesperson for the resort’s slope management department.

The Britons were in a group of five people and a professional instructor who were lower down ⁠the mountain and did not see the approaching danger, he added.

They were off-piste skiing, reports said, something that was “strongly discouraged” according to a message on the resort’s website, citing a “very high avalanche risk”.

Other reports said six skiers in total were swept away, but this has not been confirmed by officials.

France’s national weather forecaster, Meteo-France, issued a red avalanche warning for the Savoie region, which borders Italy, in southeast France on Thursday.

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