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Officials in a town at the foot of Switzerland's famed Matterhorn are resuming helicopter flights to ferry out stranded tourists amid efforts to open roads and rail lines that have been closed due to heavy snowfall and an elevated avalanche risk. The Zermatt tourism office initially said a rail line from the town was due to partially reopen Wednesday, but then corrected that to say that the line would remain closed at least until the afternoon after helicopter crews spotted a new snow mass left from an avalanche days earlier. (AP Photo)
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Tourists wait in line at the heliport of Air Zermatt for a flight by airlift into the valley to Raron, in Zermatt. (AP Photo)
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The baggage of tourists get packed in a net by support staff at the heliport of Air Zermatt for an airlift into the valley to Raron, in Zermatt. (AP Photo)
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Due to heavy snowfall and rain showers, Zermatt can only be reached by air. (AP Photo)
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Swiss authorities have closed ski slopes, hiking trails, cable cars, roads and train service into the town of Zermatt amid a heightened risk of avalanches, stranding some 13,000 tourists in the town. (AP Photo)
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A police official in Zermatt, who was not authorized to give his name, said an estimated 300 to 400 people flew out the day before, when some 13,000 tourists were unable to leave by road or rail. (AP Photo)
An avalanche crosses the road and railway on the way towards Zermatt in St. Niklaus, Switzerland. (AP Photo) -
Local officials said no lives are in danger and the situation is calm, with cafes open and many streets clear. (AP Photo)
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Helicopter teams were also deploying to trigger controlled avalanches to release snow buildup after more than 1 meter (39 inches) of snow fell in some parts of the region in 24 hours. (AP Photo)
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A train clears snow from a railway in Zermatt resort, Switzerland. Frank Techel, an avalanche forecaster at Swiss avalanche research institute SLF, said that roughly 3-4 meters (about 10-13 feet) of snow had been dumped on the Zermatt area so far this year, which he called an "extraordinary" amount for the region in such a short span. (Image: Reuters)
