At least five people killed in string of avalanches in Austria

At least five people have been killed in a string of avalanches in Austria. The government office of the Tirol region said intense snowfall over the last week had led to accumulations of up to 1.5 metres (5ft). Combined with strong winds and weak snowpack below, the conditions were especially susceptible to avalanches.

Tirol police said five off-piste skiers were caught up in a nearly 450-metre-wide avalanche on Friday afternoon in the St Anton am Arlberg area at an altitude of about 2,000 metres. An American and a Pole were among the five dead whose bodies were recovered after the avalanche, and a 21-year-old Austrian died of injuries after being taken to hospital.

Late on Friday morning in the Nauders-Bergkastel resort to the south-east, a 42-year-old German man and his 16-year-old son were caught in an avalanche. The teen survived with injuries and called for help, but his father was killed.

Austria, Tirol

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