Zermatt

The bodies of five skiers have been found by rescuers near Switzerland's luxury Zermatt resort.

Three bodies were located in one area and two more were discovered higher up on a narrow patch of snow, rescue service Air Zermatt said.

In a separate incident on Friday night, Air Zermatt was also involved in a challenging mountain rescue on the Fiescherhörner, where four alpinists were stranded amid fog and high winds.

On Thursday, road and rail routes were cut off into the resort of Zermatt in the southern canton of Valais and tourists and residents were told to stay indoors in the French resort of Tignes.

The Swiss ski resort of Zermatt was cut off and tourists and residents were told to stay indoors in the French resort of Tignes because of heavy snow in the Alps on Thursday.