New footage shows snow cave where family of skiers sheltered dying in the Alps

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New footage shows the snow cave dug up by a family of skiers before they froze to death in the Alps, as tributes poured in for two brothers who died.

The group had dug an emergency cave to shelter from the brutal elements but sadly they slipped into unconsciousness before dying.

Now pictures of the family before the tragic incident have been released.

Jean-Vincent Moix and his brother David are believed to have died after being caught in a snowstorm on Saturday afternoon.

Their brother, a cousin, and an uncle were also killed while a sixth person remains missing.

The skiers tried to shelter in a snow cave after getting caught in a storm and freezing temperatures (Credit: Valais Police)

David Moix who tragically died with his brother Jean-Vincent (Credit: Facebook)

Marc Moix, a captain of the police force in Valais, remains missing (Credit: Valais police)

Search is ongoing for the sixth missing skier (Credits: EPA)

Jean-Vincent, a former private banker educated at the University of Westminster in London, was a passionate mountaineer and had decided to switch careers, MailOnline reported.

Earlier this week a two-day search operation for a group of six skiers turned into a recovery mission after five bodies were discovered along a popular trail on the Swiss-Italian border.

The family had set off from Zermatt on a ski tour but they went missing near the 3,706m Tete Blanche peak, leading to a frantic search against the clock on Saturday.

Five people were found frozen to death inside a snow cave after becoming lost and ‘disorientated’, head of the rescue team told Swiss media.

The rescuers found five skiers on Sunday ‘without any signs of life’, a statement from Swiss Valais canton police said.

Mayor of Vex, where Jean-Vincent had recently been elected as a councillor, paid tribute to him along with other devastated colleagues.

Mayor Sebastien Menoud said losing a colleague on the local council is ‘such a huge tragedy’.

Mountain search and rescue is ongoing along the Arolla trail (Credits: EPA)

He added: ‘Our thoughts are with him, his family and those around him and we express our deepest condolences to them.

‘One knows that it is an immeasurable pain that his family is now confronted with.

‘We would like to take some of that pain away from them, even if we can’t do too much and we know that we can’t bring the deceased back.

‘In the office at the town hall on Monday there were a lot of tears but there were also people who didn’t know anything about the weekend’s drama.’

After studying in the UK, Jean-Vincent was a student at the University of St Gallen where he was a member of his local football team and played in a brass band.

His brother David also lived in the village of Vex, working as a lawyer.

A friend Lucas Nanchen posted a touching tribute on Facebook: ‘Why is it always the best ones leave first?

A vigil was held in the village of Vex on Sunday in memory of the dead skiers (Credits: EPA)

‘David (like his brothers) was the epitome of selflessness, always listening. David was very generous. Lowkey he never came forward and yet he could have.

‘The mountains of his region, which he knew by heart and cherished so much, took him away.

‘Last Sunday, he was still explaining how he was looking forward to travelling the world after passing his Bar degree with flying colours.

‘From tonight on, he’ll be watching this world from up there. Today I am at a loss for words to express the sorrow of this loss.

‘David, your light will shine in our hearts forever. To all those affected by this tragedy, my deepest thoughts are with you.

‘Together, let’s remember them for all the happiness they brought to our lives. May their souls rest in peace.’

The skiers, all Swiss nationals, were aged from 21 to 58 and they had left Zermatt on Saturday morning.

The family of five were from the Valais canton, while the sixth missing person was from the canton of Fribourg.

But they never arrived to Arolla near the Matterhorn mountain where they were expected later the same day.

Where the family went missing (Credit: MailOnline)

One skier managed to send a distress signal to rescuers at 5.19pm which pointed rescuers to an estimated location, Blick reported.

Although teams on both sides of the Arolla route were alerted, the search was hampered by severe weather conditions.

The head of Zermatt’s air rescue service Anjan Truffer said the group’s journey could have been hindered by the bad weather rather than being struck by an avalanche, as they went missing in an area with a low risk of avalanches.

The group’s emergency snow cave was located just above 3,500m, the Neue Zurcher Zeitung said.

The 75-mile route followed by the skiers from Zermatt to Arolla is part of the ‘Haute Route.’

Tracks followed by ski tours are typically unprepared, and participants are often equipped with location finders and avalanche shovels in the case of emergencies.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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