Five German tourists, including a 17-year-old girl, have died in an avalanche while climbing Mount Ortler in the Italian Alps.
The deadly avalanche struck on Saturday at an altitude of approximately 3,200 meters (10,500 feet) on the mountain’s Vertana Peak.
Rescue teams quickly located and recovered the bodies of three climbers shortly after the incident.
The search continued through the night for two missing individuals, a man and his 17-year-old daughter, whose bodies were found and recovered Sunday morning.
All five victims were part of a larger group ascending a corridor on the north face of the Cima Vertana trail when the avalanche hit.
The avalanche impacted two separate climbing formations. One group of three climbers was completely buried.
From a second group of four climbers, two managed to survive and were able to alert emergency services to the tragedy.
Authorities deployed two rescue helicopters, along with firefighters and specialized alpine rescue teams, to the remote mountainous location. The incident underscores the inherent dangers associated with high-altitude alpine expeditions.