British snowboarder, 43, plunges 330ft to his death from rocky ledge while riding off-piste at top French ski resort
A British snowboarder has died after plunging 330 feet from a rocky ledge in an off-piste area near the La Plagne ski resort in the French Alps.It was around 2.15pm on March 28, when ski patrol at La Plagne were first alerted to the disappearance of a skier, a 43-year-old man.An initial investigation established that he had last been seen using the ski lifts in the Bécoin area.Meanwhile, an alpinist in the area reported a grim discovery to mountain rescue after finding a victim off-piste. Ski patrollers, alongside the mountain rescue team from the Modane center, rushed to the scene.Despite their efforts, the man in his forties did not survive. His body was evacuated by helicopter.'The victim, who was alone, was found in the late afternoon in the Bécoin area. She fell about 100 meters from a rocky ledge,' the Modane CRS said, confirming earlier reports.Authorities have opened an investigation to determine the exact cause of death. Skiing piste on top of alpine mountain, La Plagne, France
Another tourist also died after being buried in a 820ft-wide avalanche in Austria over the weekend after skiing off piste.Federico Giubilato, who would have turned 42 on Monday, became trapped with his friend who managed to break free.Although his friend called emergency services, it was too late and the man was declared dead.The tragedies come after a deadly season on the slopes. During the 2024 to 2025 season, excluding avalanches, 31 people died across around fifty ski resorts, including 18 in collisions, according to figures from the National Mountain Safety Observation System. Meanwhile, since the start of the season, avalanches have killed more than 30 people in France, including six during a weekend on January 10 and 11.At least four Brits died in avalanches in Europe this season, as severe snowfall and unstable mountain conditions wreaked havoc across the Alps and beyond.The vast majority of avalanche victims in Europe were caught in wind slab avalanches or collapses linked to persistent weak layers buried deep within the snow, often triggered after fresh downfalls.Most were skiing off piste or travelling in backcountry terrain, with others killed while mountaineering, climbing or hiking.On February 17, a British man died in the Alps after an avalanche hit a group of five off-piste skiers and their guide near a French resort. Two skiers were found in cardiorespiratory arrest and later pronounced dead, according to Marion Lozac'Hmeur, Public Prosecutor of Gap. One man, born in 1987, was Polish. The other, born in 1989, was a British national originally from Poland who lived in Switzerland. The deaths came just days after two other British skiers as well as a French national were killed in an avalanche in the upmarket French Alpine resort of Val d’Iserethe previous week.The Brits were named as Stuart Leslie, 46, and 51-year-old Shaun Overy.Emergency services responded quickly but could not save their lives, a resort official said, noting that all of the victims had avalanche transceivers.
