Four skiers have died and five others are missing after an avalanche in the French Alps.
The victims, all reportedly French nationals, were skiing off-piste at the resort of Tignes when they were hit by a massive wall of snow.
Images from the scene showed dozens of people with poles searching for survivors.
Two of the victims were pulled alive from the snow but died later, according to local media reports.
The victims were a 49-year-old instructor, a 48-year-old father, his 15-year-old son and a 19-year-old, according to the Associated Press news agency.
Albertville deputy prefect Nicolas Martrenchard said: “We lament the four deceased victims and we think there will be only four. The search continues. It was an avalanche of a huge scale.”
A rescue worker said the bodies of the victims were retrieved by early afternoon.
The avalanche, said to have been triggered by a group of skiers higher on the slope, is the worst on French slopes this season.
One local worker, who did not want to be named, said: “The Lavachet Wall where it happened is a very dangerous bit of off-piste.
“There is a huge trench at the bottom that was dug to protect the town.
“It is a sad day in Tignes. Everyone is really sad and in shock — and of course praying it’s not any of their friends in there.
“I’ve been here on and off for 18 years so not the first time I’ve seen this sadly.
“But the security de piste team are amazing here — they work round the clock when snow is heavy trying to make it as safe as possible.”
The incident happened at about 2,100m (6,900 ft) at 9.35am Irish time on Monday.
Eight people had registered for the session with the instructor when the incident occurred, according to reports.
‘It’s devastating’
Vicky Allen, a chalet rep, said: “There is a huge search effort still out — it’s a very sad day for all of us working in the resort. It’s devastating.”
Richard Miller, an IT consultant from Cambridge, said: “I saw the piste patrol scrambling with dogs so suspected something was happening.
“Some of the lifts were closed this afternoon after staff were diverted to the search.
“There are still lots of the patrol searching but a lot less people than earlier and they seemed to be scaling back.”
About 10cm (4ins) of fresh snow fell on the slopes of the resort near the Italian border last week and more is forecast this week.
The avalanche risk had been a three on a scale of five before the incident.
Experts said a strong wind and warmer temperatures had made an avalanche more likely.
Three people had died in incidents in the French Alps and Pyrenees this year before Monday’s avalanche.
An avalanche in the Apennines in central Italy last month left 29 dead after a hotel was crushed by tons of snow.
Tignes is popular with British skiers and this week is one of the busiest of the season as it coincides with school holidays in the UK and France.
PA