Skiers left stranded as blizzards hit resorts

HOLIDAYMAKERS in the Alps have been left stranded after heavy snowfall tightened its grip on resorts in Austria.

St Anton – a favourite destination for British skiers – became the latest area to be completely cut off last night.

Almost a foot and a half of snow fell at the weekend, cutting off all road and rail access.

More heavy snowfalls are expected through this week, bringing the avalanche risk across the majority of Austria’s Tirol region to five out of five.

The area includes St Anton, Lech and Ischgl. Rudi Mair, of the Tirol Avalanche Warning Service, said the threat was at its highest since 1999. That year an avalanche killed 38 people in the resort of Galtur. In a state-

‘Exceptional circumstances’

ment on its website, the resort of Lech described the extreme weather as an emergency situation.

‘Exceptional circumstances require exceptional measures,’ it said. ‘The emergency committee is doing everything to make sure that all villages and all people currently residing in the affected areas stay safe. Please keep calm.’

Two weeks ago 13,000 tourists were stranded in Switzerland because of extreme weather in Zermatt. The resort has been cut off again, with no road or rail access, due to the extremely high avalanche risk.

Visitors to the area have been advised to find alternative accommodation in lower-altitude towns and cities such as Basel, Zurich and Geneva.

Avalanche expert Henry Schniewind said: ‘ No matter what the locals say about it being like this all the time in the past, this season’s levels of snow will almost certainly be going down in the all-time records, especially in the higher resorts.’