Fresh weather warning for Alpine ski resorts as thousands of holidaymakers freed
Trains have begun running to the Swiss ski resort of Zermatt where up to 13,000 tourists have been trapped by heavy snowfall since Monday.
However, further extreme weather is expected in some areas of the Alps next week, which could bring more problems for skiers.
The Matterhorn Gotthard railway company said the track between Zermatt and Tasch had been cleared of snow and shuttle services resumed late yesterday afternoon.
Several hundred skiers had already been airlifted from the luxury resort by helicopter, which was the only means of reaching the town after an unusually high quantity of snow fell over the Alps, causing havoc across the region.
A five-storey building in the Italian ski resort of Sestrieres was hit by an avalanche on Monday afternoon, forcing 29 people to escape through the garage, said the BBC.
Up to six feet of snow fell in 36 hours in parts of the Savoie, leading French forecasters to describe the snowfall as the kind that is only seen ‘once in every 30 years’.
It caused a number of avalanches and power cuts and road closures, disrupting transport services. Ski lifts were also closed in some resorts due the avalanche risk, which was set at a maximum for the first time in 10 years. A British skier, John Bromwell, is still unaccounted for after disappearing in the French resort of Tignes on Sunday.
Website weathertoski.co.uk said the relatively calm weather that has since descended on the Alps will last through out of the weekend, but more snow is expected in the southern Alps from Sunday, with heavier snow becoming widespread by the middle of next week. "Some models are predicting further extreme snowfalls for the western Alps," it warned.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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