00:00This video was captured from the base of Mount Blanc in the French Alps, and this was the moment
00:05an avalanche began rolling down its face, an event which ended in the deaths of several people.
00:10According to local authorities, the avalanche covered more than half a mile of the mountain's
00:14face in snow and debris, though they still don't know what started it. However, according to
00:18National Geographic, 90% of avalanches begin due to human causes. This one in particular occurred
00:24at an elevation of just under 11,500 feet. According to Reuters, at least four people
00:30are reported to have been killed by the avalanche while they were backcountry skiing on the mountain.
00:34However, authorities are continuing search and rescue efforts in the event more were caught
00:38up in it. The identities of those killed are still unknown as well. Avalanches can travel
00:43upwards of 80 miles per hour while rumbling down the mountain face, reaching those speeds
00:47in around five seconds according to National Geographic, meaning if you're in its path,
00:52there's little you can do to evade it. National Geographic also reports that these types of
00:56events kill some 150 people every year, with experts saying they could become more common
01:01as climate change worsens.
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