Three friends plunged nearly 1,000 feet to their deaths after they were swept from a mountain ridge when a massive snow slab broke

Gaudenzio Bonini, Matteo Auguadro and Matteo Lomazzi were ascending with crampons - traction devices attached to footwear to improve mobility - when they were struck by the avalanche

Three friends have died after being swept nearly 1,000 feet to their deaths by an avalanche on an Italian mountain.

Gaudenzio Bonini, Matteo Auguadro and Matteo Lomazzi were ascending Punta Valgrande in the Lepontine Alps with crampons - traction devices attached to footwear to improve mobility - when they were hit by the snow slab.

The friends were 2,800m (9,186ft) above sea level when the horror unfolded shortly after midday on Sunday.

Two others in their group, who were at the front, narrowly escaped.

Teacher Lorenzo Locarni, 32, and architect Renato Rossi, 63, were only grazed by the avalanche above Trasquera.

The pair, from Verbania, managed to dig the trio’s bodies out of the snow with the help of other climbers who were nearby. The snowslip had pushed them about 400m (1,312 ft) downslope.

Mountain rescue workers and police officers arrived at the scene in two helicopters, along with sniffer dogs.

Despite efforts to revive the victims, they died from injuries likely caused by the force of the descent.

Locarni and Rossi, who were in shock, were taken to a hospital with minor injuries.

There was a level-three or “considerable” avalanche risk warning in place at the time, according to local media.

A morning bulletin had warned that fresh snow could be triggered by a single person on steep slopes.

Bonini was from Ghiffa and Auguadro and Lomazzi were from Verbania, as reported by NeedToKnow.

Bonini, 65, owned a driving school in Verbania and was passionate about canoeing.

Married dad-of-two Auguadro, 48, was a sailor, having served as a bowman on the Mascalzone Latino sailing team from 2005 to 2007.

Local media say he won the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup in Porto Cervo with the Vesper crew.

Lomazzi, 34, was a cross-border worker, as well as a cycling enthusiast and mountain lover.

He had returned from a bike tour in Switzerland on Saturday.