VIENNA (AP) \u2014 Three avalanches across Austria killed eight skiers, authorities said.<\/b>
\nThree avalanches across Austria killed eight skiers, authorities said.
A female skier was fatally buried by an avalanche in the Bad Hofgastein area in western Austria, at an altitude of about 2,200 meters (7,200 feet), around 12:30 p.m. Saturday, according to the Pongau mountain rescue service.
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Roughly 90 minutes later, an avalanche in nearby Gastein Valley, south of the city of Salzburg, swept away seven people. Four were killed, two seriously injured and one escaped unharmed.
In the town of Pusterwald in central Austria, three Czech skiers were killed in an avalanche shortly before 4:30 p.m., police said. Four of their companions were evacuated to safety.
\u201cThis tragedy painfully demonstrates how serious the current avalanche situation is,\u201d said Gerhard Kremser, district head of the Pongau mountain rescue service, noting the \u201cclear and repeated warnings\u00a0\u00bb about avalanche risk.<\/p>\n