The Pigne d'Arolla mountain is pictured near Sion, Switzerland, in this picture released by the Police Cantonale Valaisanne April 30, 2018. Police Cantonale Valaisanne/Handout via REUTERS

GENEVA (Reuters) - Two more ski hikers have died after being caught in a sudden storm in the Swiss Alps, bringing the toll to six, while three women remain hospitalized in poor condition, Swiss police said on Tuesday.

Rescuers on helicopters found 14 people on Monday who had been forced to spend a night outdoors in the Pigne d’Arolla area while crossing on skis from Chamonix in France to Zermatt in Switzerland, police in the Swiss canton of Valais said.

The dead include two Italian couples and their Italian guide, a 59-year-old who died in a fall, as well as a Bulgarian woman who died in hospital on Tuesday, police said in a statement.

Three women remain in hospital - Swiss, French, and Italian - one of whose condition is life-threatening, the police said.

Five people are suffering from lesser hypothermia including three French nationals, a German woman and an Italian.