5 skiers found dead on glaciers in Switzerland; Another skier who was killed by avalanche

The corpses of five skiers were found on a glacier over the Swiss resort of Zermatt, according to the authorities, and another person was killed after an avalanche in a village north of there.

The Valais cantonal police said on Sunday that the victim group was on the Adler Glacier, after two hikers had reported that they had seen abandoned skis near the Rimpfischhorn, a 4,000-meter summit in the Valais Alps.

The formal identification of the victims is still in progress and their nationalities have not yet been published.

The authorities have opened an investigation of the circumstances of the accident. Weather conditions and avalanche activities in the region are examined as part of the probe.

On Saturday, in a high -altitude holiday city of Kandersteg, which is 1.5 hours north of Zermatt, the local police said that an avalanche buried three skiers on the Morgenhorn and killed one of them. According to the Bern police, two of the men had minor injuries.

The deceased was identified as a 29-year-old Swiss citizen from the canton of Bern, the police said.