UPDATED: Norwegian and French officials have identified the four Norwegian skiers killed in an avalanche in the French Alps on January 29. All of them were taking part in a half-year course to study skiing and avalanches, organized by a high school in Alta in Northern Norway.
They were part of a group of skiers trekking in the Savoie region close to the Italian border, when they became avalanche victims themselves. Those killed were identified as Bjarte Selsaas, age 29 from Vindafjord, Jon Håvard Hagerup Appelkvist, age 31 from Stjørdal, Ingrid Velken Kverneland, age 32 from Færder and Emil Tobias Langhus Bye, age 22 from Oslo.
Officials from Norway’s foreign ministry and the Norwegian Embassy in Paris were working with French authorities on the case. Officials from the school in Northern Norway also traveled to the area and could confirm that others in the group took part in efforts to dig the victims out of the snow. Three were killed at the scene and the fourth died later at a hospital in Grenoble.
The local mayor in the area described the avalanche as “very large,” and said all those involved were equipped with electronic devices making it easier to find them under masses of snow. All of those in the group were well-trained in mountaineering and said to be well-equipped.
The avalanche was the latest of several others in the area this month, two of which also resulted in fatalities. It unleashed a major emergency response involving around 20 rescue workers and specially trained dogs. Family members of the victims have since traveled to the area and took part in memorial services over the weekend.
NewsinEnglish.no staff
