An extreme sports lover has died after being buried by an avalanche.
Alessandro Stucovitz was with three friends shortly before the horror unfolded.
They had taken a cable car to the top of Piz Palü Mountain on the Italy–Switzerland border.
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After reaching the summit on Sunday (19 May), they split into two groups.
Two went down the ascent route towards Diavolezza, Switzerland.
The other two, including Stucovitz, 38, began skiing down the mountain’s north face, as reported on Need To Know.
Moments later, around noon, a snowpack broke loose on the north face, sending snow hurtling down the 3,899m (13,000ft) mountain.
Stucovitz was buried by the mass of snow.
The force of the avalanche dragged him several hundred metres down the mountain.
His friend was uninjured.
Rescuers and a helicopter were dispatched to the scene. When they reached Stucovitz, he was lifeless and there was nothing they could do.
The Swiss authorities are investigating the case.
Stucovitz, who was from Milan, Italy, was super enthusiastic about ski mountaineering and steep skiing.
He is the third Italian ski mountaineer to have lost his life in Switzerland in just 24 hours.
Also on Sunday (19 May), another snowslip on Pigne d’Arolla killed two men, aged 36 and 49, from Lecco, Italy.
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