Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Heavy snow in Austria

Updated at 2:40 pm on 8 January 2012

Heavier than usual snow has fallen in parts of Austria and more snow is predicted.

Part of a major railway route is closed until Sunday afternoon in the west of the country and some villages and tourist resorts are cut off.

Up to 1.2 metres of fresh snow has been recorded in some areas since Thursday.

The BBC reports the probability of avalanches is extremely high and the Austrian army has put several helicopters on high alert.

On Friday, around 15,000 tourists and locals were snowed in at ski resorts on the Arlberg mountain.

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