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full screen Several avalanche accidents have hit the Alps in recent days. Archive image. Photo: Valentin Flauraud/AP/TT
Warning for high avalanche risk after several days of snow. Skiers in the French Alps are advised to be very careful after several avalanche accidents hit the area.
The authority in French Savoie, where, among other things, the ski resorts of Val d’Isère and Val Thorens are located, urges people to be extra careful after the area has been hit by many avalanches in recent days. On Christmas Day, a 13-year-old boy died when he was swept away in an avalanche in the ski resort of Les Arcs. The boy went off-piste.
Earlier this week, a father and his two sons were injured when they were swept away in an avalanche in Val d’Isère. On the same day, Swiss snowboarder Sophie Hediger also died in an avalanche accident in the Swiss Alps.
The reason for the high avalanche risk is intense snowfall in recent days. Météo France has recorded 60 cm to one meter of snow in many areas of the northern Alps.
“Remarkable amounts of snow together with strong winds have recently affected the Savoie massif, which significantly increases the risk of avalanches,” writes the municipality in a press release.
Currently, the avalanche risk is calculated at level three on a five-point scale, which could mean spontaneous avalanches. The authority emphasizes that most avalanche accidents that occurred last year were precisely when the avalanche risk was at level three. Therefore, the public is asked to take “all necessary precautions” and follow the general advice.