A British man has been killed in the French Alps amid a wave of avalanches that have claimed at least six lives in recent days.
The Briton was among the three people who died in deadly avalanches on Tuesday. He had been skiing with a group of four others when the avalanche struck near the resort town of La Grave on Tuesday morning, local media reported.
Mountain rescuers came to the scene but the Briton and a Polish citizen were pronounced dead, according to the BBC. Both are said to be aged in their 30s.
Two Britons also died in an avalanche in the Val d’Isere ski resort on Friday morning.
The deaths come as France grapples with heavy snowfall in the Alps and flooding in several western regions after days of intense rain, with a rare red alert for avalanche risk issued last week.
Local authorities have launched investigations to determine the cause of death in both avalanches, according to reports, at least one of which is a manslaughter probe.
Following the incident in La Grave, a second large slide, about 300 metres wide, swept across a road and a footpath in the town of Valloire, southeast France, the prefecture of Savoie said in a statement.
Rescue teams, including mountain police officers, firefighters, dog units and army specialists, were deployed for more than four hours before operations were halted in the late afternoon due to the risk of further avalanches, the prefecture added.
One person died, while two of the three wounded were in serious condition and evacuated by helicopter to nearby hospitals, it said.
Just days before, two British men were among three killed in an avalanche in the Val d’Isere ski resort on Friday morning.
The pair were said to have been part of a group of five people accompanied by an instructor who were off-piste skiing. The third person killed is said to have been a French person who was skiiing separately from the group.
Albertville public prosecutor Benoit Bachelet said in a statement that a manslaughter investigation had now been opened, according to reports. He added that the ski instructor, who was with the group, was unharmed and tested negative for drugs and alcohol.
A day before the tragedy, a rare red avalanche warning had been issued across the Savoie region by Meteo-France, which is the national weather service. Le Monde reported this is only the third time such a warning had been issued in 25 years.
The Val d’Isère ski resort’s website said off-piste skiing was “strongly discouraged” due to a “very high avalanche risk”.
On Friday, a UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said: “We are aware of an accident in which two British men have died in France. We are in contact with the local authorities and stand ready to offer consular assistance.”
On Tuesday, an avalanche warning was issued for the Northern Alps and the Hautes-Alpes, which includes La Grave, by Meteo-France, the country’s national weather service.
It said the avalanche risk remains high on Wednesday as sunshine is forecast, leading to thawing ice.
An FCDO spokesperson said on Wednesday: “We are supporting the family of a British man who died in France and are in contact with the local authorities.”
