Several people were swept away on Monday by an avalanche in Zermatt, one of the most popular ski and mountaineering resorts in Switzerland. Heavy snowfall and very strong winds have prompted authorities to warn of a significant risk of avalanches in the Alpine regions of southern Switzerland.
“Very large, and sometimes extremely large, spontaneous avalanches are to be expected,” the Institute for the Study of Snow and Avalanches (SLF) indicated on Monday. This winter, fourteen people have already lost their lives in avalanches.