WORLD NEWS | Four killed in avalanche in French Alps

Paris [France]April 10 (ANI): An avalanche hit the southwest of Mont Blanc in the French Alps on Sunday (local time), French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said, Deutsche Welle reported. , leaving four dead and nine wounded.

He wrote on Twitter that the avalanche occurred at noon on the Armancette Glacier.

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According to Deutsche Welle, the four people killed in the avalanche were backcountry skiing in the mountains, but their identities have not yet been determined.

The incident happened midday on the Armancette Glacier at an altitude of about 3,500 meters (11,500 feet). The glacier is located in the Haute-Savoie region, about 30 kilometers (nearly 20 miles) southwest of Chamonix.

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The small town of Chamonix at the foot of Mont Blanc is France’s main holiday destination for the Easter long weekend.

Emmanuel Coquand, spokesman for the Haute-Savoie local authority, said the avalanche was extensive, Deutsche Welle reported.

Local France-Bleu radio station put the size of the avalanche at 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) long and 100 meters (328 feet) wide.

According to the Deutsche Welle news report, the radio station quoted the local Thonon County as saying that two helicopters had been sent to assist in the search.

French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on Twitter that rescuers were continuing to search for more casualties and that his thoughts were with the victims and their families.

The news comes a day after Swiss authorities rescued a group of hikers who were trapped in an avalanche in the Swiss Alps, Deutsche Welle reported. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)