Three skiers in Austria died at the weekend and four others are still missing after heavy snowfall plunged large parts of the country into chaos, authorities said on Monday.
Two German skiers were killed in avalanches in the western region of Vorarlberg on Sunday, while a Slovenian skier also died in the region of Salzburg, rescue services said. Four snowshoe-hikers have been reported missing, also in the Salzburg region.
Up to 1.5 metres (five feet) of snow have fallen in the centre and north of Austria since the middle of last week, with up to three metres of snow in the mountains around Salzburg, meteorological services said.