Three people missing after huge landslide crashes down on Swiss Alps village

Extreme thunderstorms and heavy rain caused huge swathes of land to give way.

Three people have been reported missing after a terrifying landslide ploughed into a village in Switzerland.

Brutal thunderstorms and heavy rain caused huge swathes of land to give way before crashing into a group of houses in the Alpine valley of Misox in Graubunden.

One woman was pulled out alive after she was buried under the rubble in Sorte village, in the municipality of Lostallo, which lies to the south east of the country.

But there are fears for three people who have not been found and a search operation has now been launched in an attempt to rescue them.

Rescuers have been scouring all day today with excavators and specially trained search dogs.

Helicopters and drones have also been used in the hunt.

William Kloter, from the Swiss police, who is leading the rescue operations, told local media that he was hoping to find the three missing people alive.

It’s thought the trio could have been inside their homes when flooding hit.

Pictures of the aftermath of the rockslide show the sheer scale of the destruction caused, including to a road which was completely obliterated.

Swiss President Viola Amherd said she was shocked by the level of damage done by the severe weather.

‘My thoughts are with those affected. I thank the emergency personnel for their tireless efforts in this difficult situation,’ she wrote on X.

MeteoSchweiz, the government’s office for weather and climate, said almost 12cm of rain fell in the valley on Friday – half of which came down in just one hour.

It said the concentration of so much rain in such a short period of time happens ‘only once every 30 years’ and is what caused the problems.

Rivers have burst their banks, while three houses and three cars were completely swept away by water in the village, according to Grisons police.

The woman who was freed was taken to hospital in Lugano.

Elsewhere in Switzerland, the popular tourist destination of Zermatt in the southern canton of Valais near the famous Matterhorn mountain remains inaccessible.

Heavy rains and melting snow have caused the Mattervispa River to overflow, cutting off the village.

Dramatic videos showed the otherwise small river that flows through Zermatt turning into a muddy flash flood, partially submerging streets in the popular ski resort.

The Matterhorn-Gotthard Railway halted operations with no alternative transportation available, the railway company announced on social media on Saturday morning.

Emergency services in the canton of Valais were on high alert over the levels of the Rhone River, which reached its peak on Saturday.

Authorities have warned residents to avoid lower parts of their houses, including cellars, and keep away from swelling rivers and refrain from parking on bridges.

People were also advised against filming or photographing the floods due to safety reasons.

Last month, more than 2,000 people they died after were ‘buried alive’ in their sleep when a devastating landslide struck Papua New Guinea.

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