8 hikers killed in Swiss Alps

By Fatih Erel

GENEVA (AA) - Eight hikers have been killed since Sunday following a storm in the Swiss Alps, according to police Tuesday.

In total, 14 hikers were caught in the storm.

"On 29.04.2018 [Sunday], 14 hikers trapped by the bad weather were forced to spend the night outside, in the area of ​​Pigne d'Arolla; 4 people died in hospitals from hypothermia. These are two Italian couples, one aged 53 and the other 45 years old and 1 person died at the scene after a fall," police said in a statement.

"During the later evening of April 30, 2018, another person died in the hospital. The identification of the victim is currently underway. Meanwhile, all family members of the victims have been notified," Valais cantonal police said in its statement.

According to Swiss police, some ski hikers were in critical conditions.

Five people were slightly injured from hypothermia. “They were three French [two men and one woman] aged 58, 57 and 55, a 48-year-old German and a 50-year-old Italian,” it said.

In a separate incident, the bodies of two climbers were also found in the Swiss Alps on Monday. They were in their early 20s and were attempting to climb the Monch.

A French couple was in the Saas-Fee region and they were carried away by a snow drift, the woman saved herself while the man died in hospital after being extracted by rescuers on Monday evening, Swissinfo news agency said on Tuesday.