French Alps Avalanche Hits School Group, Kills 2 People

"Five people have been found and searches are still underway," the head of the police unit, Bernard Host, told Reuters.

Three of the injured were found in a state of cardiopulmonary arrest, police said.

One of the dead was a fourteen year-old member of the school group from the eastern French city of Lyon. The body of a Ukrainian skier was also found by rescue teams, a spokesman for regional police said.

The avalanche, which occurred at the Deux Alpes ski resort about 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the Italian border, happened after a large sheet of snow broke off above a black-rated slope that had been closed following several days of heavy snowfall.