Moment avalanche cascades down mountain in Italy as dozens of skiers watch on – before desperately trying to flee

This is the terrifying moment a massive avalanche crashed down the side of a mountain, engulfing dozens of skiers desperately trying to escape.

Dramatic images captured a mass of snow and ice tumbling down a steep hill near the Italian resort of Courmayeur on Tuesday.

In the clip shared on social media, a large group of skiers waiting at the chair lift on the other side of the mountain is seen looking with fear and excitement at the snowfall falling on them.

The dense, wavy snowpack quickly gained speed and passed over a row of tall pine trees.

The snowfall coming down from the mountain fascinated the audience.

However, when they saw the hills rising above them, their captivity turned into terror at the last moment.

Dozens of skiers, many of whom appeared to have young children with them, tried to escape the area at the last moment but were swallowed by the snow cloud.

It is unknown whether he was injured or not.

The avalanche near the Zerotta ski lift in Val Veny occurred just days after two skiers were killed in a similar incident at the same resort.

Dramatic footage captured a mass of snow and ice tumbling down a steep hill near the Italian resort of Courmayeur on Tuesday.

Italy’s Alpine Rescue said the tragedy occurred on Sunday on Couloir Vesses, a well-known freeride route.

One of the injured, who was in serious condition, was taken to hospital but later died.

15 rescuers, three dog units and two helicopters participated in the search and rescue efforts.

Courmayeur, a town with a population of approximately 2,900, is located 190 kilometers northwest of Milan, one of the host venues for Milan-Cortina.

Resorts in Italy have been placed on high avalanche alert as poor snowfall in the inner layers has led to risky conditions for skiers.

Meanwhile, scores of Britons have also been killed while skiing in the French Alps this winter.

A British citizen living in Switzerland died in an avalanche on Tuesday.

The slide hit the Côte Fine lane at La Grave on Tuesday morning.

According to Gap Prosecutor Marion Lozac’Hmeur, two skiers were found with cardiorespiratory arrest and were later pronounced dead.

A man born in 1987 was Polish. The other, born in 1989, was a British citizen who was originally from Poland and lived in Switzerland.

A British citizen living in Switzerland died in an avalanche on Tuesday.

The slide hit the Côte Fine lane at La Grave on Tuesday morning (pictured)

The French guide was injured and taken to Grenoble University Hospital. Two skiers from Germany and Australia escaped unhurt.

Just days before an avalanche in Val-d’Isère dragged six skiers into an off-piste area of ​​the slopes, killing a French national and two Britons.

The Brits named Stuart Leslie, 46, and Shaun Overy, 51, on Monday night.

They were dragged hundreds of meters down the mountainside and carried to a stream at the bottom of the slope; rescuers later found their bodies there.

A French national skiing alone high up on the mountain was also killed. A third Briton reportedly escaped with minor injuries after pulling himself out of the snow.

A resort official said emergency services responded quickly but were unable to prevent the deaths, noting that all of the victims had avalanche transceivers.

The deaths occurred less than 24 hours after the Savoie region was placed on a rare red avalanche alert; This alert level has only been issued twice in the 25 years since its introduction.

Although the warning was lifted on Friday morning, the risk remains at four out of five (officially ‘high’) due to avalanches that are ‘easily triggered by skiers or hikers’ and can mobilize ‘enormous amounts of snow’.

When the avalanche danger level is above level three, skiers are warned not to go off-piste.

51-year-old Shaun Overy (left) and 46-year-old Stuart Leslie (right) died in an avalanche in the French Alps.

An avalanche in Val d’Isere swept away six skiers in an off-piste area of ​​the slopes, killing a French national and two Britons.

Storm Nils blanketed the region with up to a meter of fresh snowfall on Thursday, leaving what Météo-France described as a “very unstable snow cover.”

Many resorts were forced to close, including La Plagne, Les Arcs, Peisey-Vallandry and La Grave.

The group escaped unharmed while skiing under the supervision of an instructor. Alcohol and drug tests were negative.

The instructor allegedly ignored safety warnings before the avalanche that killed the men.

When they hit the slopes, a level four warning had been issued to the region. The day before, the avalanche risk level was at five out of five for the first time in 17 years.

Val d’Isère track director Cédric Bonnevie said: ‘We can’t stop people going off the track. ‘We can’t hold everyone’s hand and there’s not much we can do unless we cover the slopes which we wouldn’t normally want to do.’

As is routine in fatal mountain accidents, a manslaughter investigation was opened by the CRS Alpes mountain rescue police, headed by Albertville prosecutor Benoît Bachelet.

Bonnevie said the avalanche went down the slope for 400 meters before turning into a stream.

He said the cause was unknown, but French media suggested it may have been triggered by the lone skier above the group.

Rescuers located two of the victims within 15 minutes because they were equipped with avalanche transceivers.

However, finding the third body became even more difficult when it was revealed that the device was underwater and no longer working.

Dogs and probes were deployed before the body was found hours later.

Mr Bonnevie told The Telegraph: ‘This is always a sad situation. ‘It’s very tragic that three people fell into the same avalanche.’

The majority of fatal winter sports accidents in France, Switzerland, Austria and Italy occur off-piste rather than during safe runs.

While avalanches account for about half of these deaths, there are an average of 25 deaths each winter in France.

There have been at least 25 avalanche deaths across the country this season alone.