The Swiss Valais canton police said the bodies of the five members of a group that vanished Saturday near the Tête Blanche mountain were found Sunday around 9:20 p.m. local time.
According to police, the group, which included five members of the same family, had set off on a ski tour from Zermatt, a popular Alpine town. The skiers were Swiss nationals ages 21 to 58.
The group was on the Zermatt-Arolla path near the Matterhorn, which straddles the border between Switzerland and Italy, and was reported missing after a family member who was supposed to pick them up Saturday afternoon in the village of Arolla became concerned when they never arrived, police said.
A search and rescue operation was launched, but officials said “very poor” weather conditions made operations “extremely delicate."
This handout picture taken on March 10, 2024 in Evolene and released on March 11, 2024 by the Police of the Canton of Valais shows a helicopter during the search operation for six cross-country skiers who went missing Tete Blanche sector in the Swiss Alps over the weekend.
Police said a member of the group was able to contact emergency services shortly after 5 p.m. Saturday, which helped authorities locate him in the Tête Blanche pass area at about 11,500 feet.
A storm and the risk of avalanches prevented helicopters from approaching the area, and five experienced rescuers who had tried to approach by land had to give up at about 10,000 feet because of the risks involved, police said.
Police have not released the identities of the dead and have not said whether they all were members of the same family.
