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Rescue mission underway as four missing after being buried by Swiss Alps avalanche

Snowslide triggered at 9,200ft near borders with Italy and France

Adam Forrest
Sunday 24 March 2019 13:52 GMT
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Swiss Alps mountain range
Swiss Alps mountain range (iStock//35007)

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Four people are missing after being buried in an avalanche high in the Swiss Alps, said police in Switzerland.

The group were hit by the Sunday morning avalanche at an altitude of 9,200ft in the Bovernier area, said Valais canton police on Twitter.

The force said rescue crews were now at the mountain area, close to the borders with France and Italy, searching for the missing people.

No further details were immediately released.

On Saturday, one person was killed and another seriously injured after getting caught in an avalanche in Austria.

Local police said the two people were part of a group in the Rax mountain range, near the town of Reichenau.

The injured person was flown to hospital by helicopter.

Officials said no one else has been reported missing, but as a precaution the avalanche area was searched, with no signs of anyone else being involved.

In January a teenager died in Austria after being caught in an avalanche while skiing near the Alpine village of St Anton am Arlberg.

The schoolboy had been skiing with his parents and brother when the family found themselves in an off-piste area covered in deep snow.

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