Police are searching for six people who have gone missing during a ski tour that departed from the Alpine town of Zermatt in Switzerland’s Valais canton.
The cross-country skiers, five of them members of the same family, went missing around Tête Blanche mountain on Saturday on the Zermatt-Arolla path, near the Matterhorn mountain that straddles the border between Switzerland and Italy, police said.
The search had been hampered by “very bad” weather conditions that prevented rescuers from getting close to the area. “The conditions … make the emergency response very difficult,” the police said.
In a later statement, they added: “The storm raging in the south of the Alps and the risk of avalanches has prevented helicopters and rescuers from approaching the area.”
Zermatt is a popular skiing resort and attracts tourists from around the world.
“The group began its tour on Saturday in Zermatt and was later reported missing in the Tête Blanche area,” the police statement said.
Police said the missing skiers were between the ages of 21 and 58. Five belong to one family from the Valais canton, while the sixth person is from the canton of Fribourg.