Two British skiers die in Mont Blanc avalanche in the French Alps

Two British skiers have died after an avalanche swept through an off-piste area of a French ski resort, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said.

The pair are reportedly a 54-year-old mother and her 22-year-old son. Another skier, reportedly an instructor, has been left injured and a hiker was killed in a separate area after the avalanche on Mont Blanc.

An FCDO spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of two British people who died in France and are in contact with the local authorities.”

The avalanche hurtled through an off-piste section of the Saint-Gervais-les-Bains ski resort on Thursday, according to the administration for the Haute-Savoie region. A man and a woman were found dead, and another person discovered injured, by mountain rescuers while five other people were taken to safety. The cause of the avalanche is being investigated.

The Associated Press (AP) reported that Saint-Gervais mayor Jean-Marc Peillex called weather conditions too unstable for such outings.

He told BFM television: “It rained, it snowed, it was warm. There are enough marked paths to ski on. It’s terrible what happened. A family is decimated, and we are very sad in Saint-Gervais.”

A 31-year-old hiker was found dead after falling on the slope of the Ecrins mountain range, AP reported. According to the news agency, local broadcaster France-Bleu said rescuers explained the hiker had stepped away from hiking paths to look at mountain goats.