Three Britons 'among dead' in French Alps avalanche

The avalanche occurred on Mont Maudit (right), which is one of the highest peaks in the Mont Blanc mountain range

A major rescue operation was launched following the disaster in the French Alps - described by local authorities as the 'deadliest snow slide in recent years'.
Christian Trommsdorff, vice president of the FGA, told the BBC: ‘There are three Britons among those killed.’
Local media reported the dead also included two Germans, two Swiss and two Spaniards.
The bodies of the Britons were found by rescuers several hours after the avalanche, while four more climbers - two of whom are also believed to be British and the other two Spanish - are still reported missing.

A rescue helicopter searches for survivors on Mont Maudit mountain (Picture: EPA)

Local police said they were 'extremely concerned' for the whereabouts of the missing, but stressed that they had not necessarily been buried by the avalanche.

It is understood 28 climbers from several countries were taking part in the expedition at the time.

Authorities were alerted to the disaster after one of the injured raised the alarm shortly before 5:30am local time.
The injured have been taken to local hospitals while police continue to search for survivors.
The rescue services have said the avalanche was caused by snow collapsing in the summer heat - with high winds overnight reportedly creating huge walls of snow which then fell, causing the disaster.

Two roped groups of climbers were enveloped by the avalanche, which authorities have described as 'the most deadly of recent years'.
A spokesman for Chamonix's Mayor Eric Fournier confirmed that those killed in the disaster were very experienced climbers who were trying to scale Mont Blanc via one of the more difficult routes, Mont Maudit and Mont du Tacul.

Mountain rescue teams prepare their equipment at the J.J. Mollaret rescue base (Picture: EPA)

However Mr Fournier said there had been no warning that such a disaster was imminent.

'There were no weather reports forecasting an avalanche risk,' he said.
Mont Maudit - known as the 'cursed mountain' - is the third highest in the Mont Blanc mountain range, peaking at around 4,465m - over 14,650ft.
It is a popular route with climbers attempting to scale the summit of Mont Blanc - but the mountain range is also regarded as one of the world's most dangerous, with around 100 people a year killed on its slopes.