Five German mountaineers were killed Saturday when an early-season avalanche struck the Alps in northern Italy, the Italian Alpine rescue organization said.

The climbers were part of two separate groups ascending near the Cima Vertana, one of the highest mountains in the eastern Alps, when they were swept away by an avalanche Saturday evening, said Federico Catania, a spokesperson for the rescue organization, which is known as CNSAS, its Italian abbreviation.

Three climbers in one group were confirmed dead Saturday evening, Catania said in an email. The other group consisted of four climbers, two of whom survived. The other two, a man and his 17-year-old daughter, were found dead in a gully Sunday.

Rescuers deployed almost immediately after the avalanche struck but faced challenging conditions as they worked to recover the climbers, Catania said, and they paused the search overnight.

Darkness and fog prevented helicopters from flying in the area early Sunday, he said.

— The New York Times