An avalanche fully buried a group of skiers in the Lepontine Alps on January 12. Three of the five skiers caught in the slide were tragically killed.
The avalanche occurred while the group was ascending Punta Valgrande, a peak on the border between Italy and Switzerland. Piedmont Alpine and Speleological Rescue were called to the scene but efforts to uncover the three fully buried skiers were unsuccessful. They were reportedly carried downhill several hundred yards and there have been mixed reports about whether or not eye witnesses away from the slide called for rescuers or if the call came from two skiers in the group who were partially buried and able to dig themselves out. The bodies of the other three still had not been recovered as of Monday because authorization from the local magistrate is needed.
The group of deceased skiers were identified as Enzo Bonini, 65, Matteo Auguadro, 48, and Matteo Lomazzi, 34.
A level 3 avalanche alert had been issued over the weekend for the area above 2,100 meters. The scale ranges up to a level 5, with five being the most dangerous the level 3 alert accounting for “considerable danger of avalanches.”
