LONDON - Police say three people hiking on a rugged Scottish mountain have been killed in an avalanche. The victims were on Buachaille Etive Mhor, a popular destination for hikers in the Glencoe area of the Scottish Highlands, near Fort William, when the snow crashed down on them around noon.
Police say a fourth person suffered a shoulder injury and five other hikers escaped unscathed.
Police said they were alerted to the accident by another climber, who was standing above the avalanche.
Rescuers took to the mountain to find the climbers in near-blizzard conditions.
The area has had heavy snowfall over the past few days and Scotland's Avalanche Information Service had rated the avalanche risk in the area as "considerable."
Inspector Pamela Ross told Sky News that police believed everyone who had been on the mountain was accounted for and that there are no reports of any other missing people.
She said officers are trying to contact the climbers' next of kin.
The distinctive pyramid-shaped peak about 1,000 metres high is one of Scotland's most recognized peaks.
"It's a well known area for climbers, but it's not an area for inexperienced climbers," said David Campbell, the manager of the nearby Glencoe Ski Center.
