6 people dead, 1 hospitalized as avalanche hits French Alps, officials say

Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY
·2 min read

Six people, including two mountain guides, are dead and at least one person was injured after an avalanche in the French Alps over the weekend, local officials said Monday.

The massive snowslide took place Sunday afternoon local time at the Armancette glacier in southeastern France about 20 miles southwest of Chamonix.

The prosecutor’s office in Bonneville, in the Haute-Savoie region, confirmed the body of a sixth person was discovered after rescue searches started Sunday and resumed early Monday.

The prefecture of Haute-Savoie said one person was sent to the hospital with minor injuries. Eight other people were found unharmed.

The identities of those killed were not immediately known.

Previously: Stunned skiers watch as a massive avalanche charges toward them in Utah

In this photo provided by Contamines Montjoie, an avalanche rolling down the Armancette glacier in Contamines-Montjoie, France, in the Haute-Savoie region, some 30 kilometers (almost 20 miles) southwest of Chamonix, Sunday April 9, 2023. The death toll from Sunday's avalanche in the French Alps rose to six, including two mountain guides, local authorities said Monday.

A nation in mourning

After the deaths were announced, France's Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin and French President Emmanuel Macron expressed their sympathy on social media.

"Today, we are mourning, and there is great sadness among all of us mountaineers, friends of Les Contamines, those who died are people we knew, and all our thoughts go out to their families," Jean-Luc Mattel, an official of the nearby Contamines-Montjoie village told the BBC.

He told the outlet the group were all thought to have been backcountry skiing – when skiers go on unmarked or unpatrolled areas.

The local France-Bleu radio station put the size of the avalanche at 3,280 feet long and 328 feet wide.

National weather agency Meteo France had not issued a specific avalanche warning for Sunday, assessing the risk as limited.

Contributing: The Associated Press

Natalie Neysa Alund covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: French Alps avalanche: 6 people dead near Chamonix, France