Four snowboarders were killed when a huge avalanche buried them in a wall of snow and ice 100 yards wide at the popular Tignes ski resort in the French Alps on Monday.

The dead included a 48-year-old father, his 15-year-old son and a 19-year-old half-brother and a 49-year-old ski instructor. Two were still alive when rescuers pulled them out of the snow, but died soon afterwards.