Two skiers died and five others were injured on Saturday when an avalanche rumbled down on them in the Italian Alps, in the Tentino-Alto Adigo region, the mountain rescue service said.The service's operation centre received an alert around midday (1100 GMT) that a dozen skiers were caught up in the avalanche, a spokesman said.
"Six helicopters were dispatched" and nearby hospitals notified, he said.
Dozens of rescue personnel, as well as firemen and law enforcement participate in the search-and-rescue effort.
A total of 25 skiers were on the mountainside where the avalanche occurred, broken up into several groups, but most of them escaped the brunt of the slide of snow, rocks and ice.
A few days ago, in the same region, a Polish man was also killed by an avalanche.
The avalanche warning given for the region on Saturday had evaluated the danger at between low and moderate.
