A British man was killed in an avalanche while he was skiing off piste with his older brother who was powerless to help , say police . The brothers , aged 30 and 31 , were descending down the slope of Mount Velan , situated in the canton of Valais in Switzerland , when the younger was caught in a deadly avalanche . He was swept away and buried under the snow at around 3,600 metres , as his brother watched helplessly . A British man is the latest person to have been killed by an avalanche on the Swiss Alps this winter , like the one pictured . The man , who has not yet been named , was skiing off piste with his brother when he was trapped under snow and killed . Three helicopers were scrambled to the rescue on Saturday at 12.20pm , but the 30-year-old , who lived in Switzerland , died on the mountain . The tragic accident happened as the men - who were both strong skiers and well equipped for the expedition - were travelling down the so-called Hannibal Corridor . The victim 's brother was unharmed but could see the avalanche sweep his brother away 'clearly ' , according to a spokesman for the Valais police force . The avalanche risk on Saturday was classed as 'limited ' , or a two out of a possible five on the European avalanche risk table . In Switzerland most avalanche deaths occur at levels two and three . The police spokesman said : 'The men were well-equipped and they were good skiers . They were alone , just the two brothers aged 30 and 31 together . A mountain climber reaches the summit of Mount Telliers , with Grad Combin and Mount Velan - the site of the latest death on the Swiss Alps - in the background . 'An avalanche was triggered in the Mont Vélan sector at a place called the Hannibal Corridor . 'The younger brother was swept away . His brother was not taken { by the avalanche } . He saw it clearly . 'Despite the rapid rescue effort , the younger skier died at the scene . 'He was 30 and lived in Switzerland in Canton Vaud . 'Both the men were equipped with avalanche transceivers . 'Three helicopters , a doctor and two guides were involved in the rescue . ' The transceivers worn by the men emit a beacon signal , which allows rescuers to search for the exact location of an avalanche victim - even when buried under several feet of snow . The Foreign Office has not released the name of the victim , but a spokesman confirmed they were aware a British citizen had been killed on the slopes . He said : 'We can confirm the death of a British national on March 28 in Switzerland . 'We stand ready to provide consular assistance . ' The death of the 30-year-old brings the total number of people killed in avalanches in the Swiss Alps this winter to 28 , making it the deadliest winter since the 2010/11 season . Across the Alps more than 100 people have perished in avalanches , and four people have been killed in Alpine avalanches since Friday . The tragic incident took place in the canton of Valais , the same region that is home for the Matterhorn mountain ( pictured ) On Friday a group of seven skiers were swept away by an avalanche as they descended the Pigne d'Arolla mountain within the Swiss Alps . All except a German man , 60 , were able to dig themselves out from under the snow . He was airlifted to hospital but later died of his injuries . Another three members of the group , which was made up of five skiers and two guides , were injured , according to a statement released by Swiss police . Mount Velan , located on the border of Switzerland and Italy , is the highest summit sitting between the Great St Bernard Pass and Grand Combin . General view of the Swiss Alps at night . 28 people have been killed skiing in the Swiss Alps this winter . Heavy snow overnight on Sunday across the Alps has raised the avalanche risk to four out of five . During the coming days , Meteo France is forecasting up to 80cm of fresh snow at altitude in the Northern Alps accompanied by strong winds . The large volume of fresh snow falling after a period of warm weather means the snow is particularly unstable and dangerous for skiiers , say experts .
The 30-year-old died when he was caught in avalanche on Mount Velan . Brother saw accident 'clearly ' , say police , and could only watch helplessly . Unnamed siblings were experienced skiers who lived in Switzerland . Deadliest winter in years on British Alps with 28 people killed by avalanches .