Irishman dies following avalanche in Switzerland

The Department Of Foreign Affairs said that it is aware of the incident. File picture

An Irishman has died following an avalanche in Switzerland.

The incident occurred at a ski resort in the country yesterday, near Siviez in the Col des Gentianes region.

Police in Switzerland said that the man was “a 29 year old Irish national residing in Valais”.

In a statement, they said: “At around 12:20pm, three skiers left the marked slope. 

“When a snow plow broke away, one of the skiers was carried away and buried.  

“After the rescue, he was flown by helicopter to the Sion hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.” 

The Department Of Foreign Affairs said that it is aware of the incident.

In a statement, the Department said: “We are aware of the case and providing all possible consular assistance.”

Several Swiss ski resorts remain open, with strict Covid-19 precautions in place.

Swiss media reported last weekend that crowds had flocked to the slopes after heavy snow in many parts of the country created perfect skiing conditions.

But Alpine experts said the avalanche risk at the time was at the second-highest level in most of the Swiss Alps, and that conditions were extremely dangerous.

Eight people have died in a series of devastating avalanches in the country since Saturday.

Two people died in separate avalanches in central Switzerland on Saturday - one in Engelberg and one in Stoos. Police said both victims were skiing off-piste. There was another death on Sunday in Casanna in Klosters.

There was another death on the Rochers-de-Naye mountain on Sunday afternoon above Montreux when four local skiers aged 19 to 21 set off an avalanche that swept them away.

Two were able to dig themselves free and rescue a third friend who was buried under the snow. The fourth skier was found that evening during a large search operation but he died from his injuries later at a Lausanne hospital.

Another skier was killed by an avalanche near Gstaad on Sunday while skiing with two others.

And on Monday morning, a 38-year-old British man was killed after he and a group of nine people were swept away by an avalanche at the popular alpine resort of Verbier, to the east of Geneva.

One of the nine was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries while the eight others escaped uninjured, local police said.

On average, 24 people die in avalanches in the country every year, with some 90% occurring in open mountainous areas where people were off-piste skiing, snowboarding, or backcountry touring on skis or snowshoes.