The avalanche occurred on Thursday afternoon at Pointe de la Golette, in the Tignes sector (Savoie).
Three hikers are missing after an avalanche occurred Thursday afternoon at the Franco-Italian border, in the Tignes sector. They were accompanied by a guide who “was able to get out of the avalanche and join a land caravan of Italian rescuers who were looking for them,” said the Savoy prefecture.
Difficult weather conditions
However, due to weather conditions, neither helicopters nor ground rescue, mobilized on the French and Italian sides, were able to reach the site of the avalanche. The Pointe de la Golette, at 3100 meters above sea level, is located on the border between Savoie and the Aosta Valley.
“Rescue operations are continuing with French and Italian rescuers in order to find the missing people,” the prefecture said.
According to the Italian news agency Ansa, among the three people missing, aged 37, 39 and 44, is a top Italian ski tourer. Relief operations, suspended at 7 p.m., will resume on Friday morning, adds Ansa.
On Sunday, six people were killed in an avalanche on the Armancette glacier, on the Mont-Blanc massif in Haute-Savoie.
