2 dead, two hurt in Italy avalanche

Two skiers died and two were hurt in an avalanche near the ski resort of Pila, in Italy's northern Aosta Valley region, Alpine Rescue services made known Saturday.

Two people were extracted "in a state of hypothermia" in the operation that employed two helicopters as well as canine units, the Alpine Rescue tweeted.

The victims were part of group of 19 people, all of them from the city of Faenza in the north-central Emilia Romagna region, RAI public broadcaster reported.

Fifteen of them were above the avalanche when the mass of snow, which had a 300-meter front, detached and barreled down the mountain, engulfing the last four people, according to RAI.

It took many hours to recover one of the two bodies, which had been thrown into a nearby lake by the impact, RAI said.