The storms dumped as much as 7ft of snow in the last two days, cutting off many of Europe’s most famous resorts and raising the avalanche risk to its highest level, The Times reports.
More than 13,000 people were trapped without electricity last night in Zermatt thanks to the only access road being blocked while all trains were cancelled. Even helicopters struggled to reach the report.
A further 10,000 tourists were trapped in Italy with half caught in Cervinia while 69 people had to be evacuated from a hotel in Sestriere after it was hit by an avalanche.
In Les Houches, near Chamonix in France, 40 buildings, including houses, were hit by an avalanche.
Meanwhile, a British snowboarder has been missing since Sunday afternoon after going for “one last run” on his own.
John Bromell, 39, was last seen boarding a ski lift in poor visibility and heavy snow and there are now fears he may have got caught in an avalanche in an area where four people were killed last year.
