By Ismail Shakil and Kanishka Singh
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Three skiers were left dead and four others injured in an avalanche near Invermere, British Columbia, Canadian authorities said on Thursday.
In total, there were ten people caught in the avalanche, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.
Among the four injured, some were in serious condition, but it is believed they will survive. One of the seriously injured was the guide, authorities said. The three remaining skiers have been safely accounted for.
All the skiers were foreign nationals, police said, except the guide. Their identities were not released.
The avalanche happened in the area of Panorama Mountain Resort near Invermere, about 160 kilometres (100 miles) west of Calgary.
A spokesperson for the resort told CBC News the avalanche occurred outside of its boundaries, but it closed some of its upper lifts in order to support rescue personnel.
There have now been a dozen avalanche fatalities in British Columbia in 2023, according to CBC News, making it one of the province’s worst years on record for avalanche deaths.
Two U.S. citizens were killed in an avalanche while on a skiing trip in British Columbia in January.
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa, writing by Kanishka Singh, editing by Chris Reese)
