Bodies of five missing skiers found in Swiss Alps

Three of group, all of whom are believed to be Swiss and aged between 21 and 58, are brothers and had been missing since Saturday

Five cross-country skiers have died in the Swiss Alps as the mountains were hit with heavy snow and high winds.
Three of the dead are brothers, according to Swiss reports. Rescuers are searching for a sixth person who they hope may have survived.
The five dead were found on Sunday evening “without any signs of life”, police from the Swiss canton of Valais said.
It is not clear whether they were hit by an avalanche or got into trouble as a result of the extreme weather.
Rescuers had to battle heavy snow, strong winds, low visibility and the risk of avalanches.
The huge search and rescue operation included 11 helicopters and 35 rescue personnel, Swiss police said at a press conference on Monday.
The helicopters included two Super Pumas from the Swiss armed forces.
“Everything possible was done to save these six people,” said Christian Varone, the head of police in the canton of Valais.
While five of the skiers were “sadly found dead”, searches are continuing for the missing sixth person, he said.
Conditions at high altitude were extreme, with very low temperatures and a lot of snow, he said.
An investigation has been launched into how the skiers died.
“We want to understand the chronology of events which led to this drama,” said Beatrice Pilloud, the procurator general of the canton. “At the moment, the circumstances are not clear.”
The skiers were found near the Col de la Tete Blanche, at around 3,500m.
The group, all of whom are believed to be Swiss and aged between 21 and 58, had been missing since Saturday, sparking a huge search and rescue operation.
They had set off from the Swiss resort town of Zermatt and were on a ski tour heading for Arolla, which lies on the border between Switzerland and Italy.
The route they took is part of the famous Haute Route that leads from Zermatt to Chamonix.
Several of the group were said to be expert cross-country skiers and had been preparing for a race, Patrouille des Glaciers or the Patrol of the Glaciers, which takes place next month.
The alarm was raised by a relative who had been waiting for the group to arrive in Arolla on Saturday afternoon. A phone call made by a member of the group at around 5pm on Saturday enabled rescuers to pinpoint their location.