The Swiss ski resort in Zermatt has been cut off, and tourists and residents have been told to stay indoors at the Tigners Resort in France due to heavy snowfall in the Alps on Thursday.
Mayor Serge Renvial said there was a high risk of an avalanche and said “we had to make a decision to protect people.”
Snow is not uncommon in the Alps in April, but the turmoil left thousands of homes in the Savoie area of eastern France without power.
In neighbouring Switzerland, the Simplon’s path to Italy and the great St. Bernard Tunnel were closed to traffic, but two cantons were severely affected.
The Valley and Bahnese Overland saw a chaos of tourists heading for ski vacations.
The road and rail routes were cut off at the resort of Zermatt in the South Canton of the Valley. Power was cut throughout Thursday, causing severe disruption to the mobile network.
Swiss media says the queues lined up outside the town’s only supermarket opening.
The Alertswiss app warned of the risk of avalanches and trees falling in the Valley, as well as the major disruptions to transport. The school was closed for that day in Shion City.
People traveling to the area for Easter were advised to delay their trip until Saturday. Local police urged people to stay home if possible.
South of Zermatt, power outages were reported in 37 of the 74 municipalities in the Aosta Valley in northwestern Italy, causing a bridge to collapse in nearby Viera, Piedmont.
The biggest problem in northwestern Italy was heavy rain. It was believed that the river broke the bank and a 92-year-old man owned after a flood occurred at his home in Monteudapo, near Turin.
A rapid water flow through the streets of a village on a hill near the PO River.
Red alerts were issued in several valleys, but the biggest concern was due to the PO, which is expected to peak river levels in the next 24 hours.
Meteorologists said that in some areas, more than 20cm of rain fell in 36 hours, with extreme peaks recorded at even higher levels.
Manuela, 33, who lives in Turin, told the BBC.
“Two rivers near Turin, PO and Dora, defeated the bank. The city is fine, but we had to close some bars and restaurants near the river in Turin.”
