(CNN) At least 16 people have died in avalanche-related accidents in Europe since the start of the year, as severe winter weather grips parts of the continent.

Three German skiers were killed and another is still missing, after they were buried in an avalanche near the Austrian ski resort of Lech am Arlberg over the weekend, a press officer for the western province of Vorarlberg told CNN.

Meanwhile, in the French Alps, two ski patrollers were killed Sunday after devices they were using to trigger avalanches exploded, the Haute-Savoie region's high mountain gendarmerie said.

The severe weather has been fueled by a persistent area of low pressure, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

A snow blower attempts to clear a path in Lofer, Austria.

That has been felt in heavy snow along the northern Alps, and as far south as the mountainous areas of northern and central Spain, as well as in Greece, where thermometers registered an all-time low of -23 degrees Celsius (-9 Fahrenheit) last week.

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