The 20-year-old woman died buried under snow on Mount Teisen in Bavaria, near the Austrian border, on Saturday.

German police said her five companions escaped unhurt.

Heavy snowfall has blanketed parts of southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland in recent days, causing travel chaos in some regions.

More is expected in the coming days, with the German weather service DWD forecasting a further 40cm (16in) to fall in some areas by Monday.

Authorities have closed some roads and rail lines due to the avalanche threat, while airports in the region have struggled to clear the large amount of fresh snow and reported cancellations.

Munich Airport, which is the second biggest in Germany, said 120 flights were cancelled and others were delayed while workers cleared runways of snow and removed ice from planes.

Austrian railway company OeBB said several train services were suspended due to the avalanche risk.

Hundreds of passengers were stuck for hours on a train early on Sunday after a snow-laden tree crashed onto the tracks near Kitzbuehel, Austria.

Around 14,000 households were temporarily left without electricity in northern Austria because of damage to power lines.

Several roads were closed around the Austrian town of Bischofshofen, Salzburg, which hosted an annual ski jump tournament this weekend.

Salzburg’s regional authorities warned against off-trail skiing on Saturday, adding that “many large, several very large avalanches are likely in the afternoon and overnight” that could affect roads and rail lines.

Officials said the slips could be triggered spontaneously and described the situation as “very precarious”.

The small village of St Johann was evacuated because authorities feared strong winds could trigger a large avalanche, the Austrian public broadcaster ORF reported.

Meanwhile, some 600 residents and tourists were stuck in the village of Soelktal following a road closure, the station reported.

Innsbruck airport said “current weather conditions have caused major restrictions in air traffic” and urged travellers to check their flight before leaving.

Source: Read Full Article