At least eight people have been killed after being buried by snow in three separate avalanches in Canada.

The deaths in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia in western Canada were reported by Canadian Mounties on Friday and Saturday.

Officials warned that cold temperatures and recent heavy snowfall made the risks of more avalanches in the region, popular among cross-country skiers and other outdoor enthusiasts, extremely high.

Search and rescue teams found the bodies of five skiers buried in snow at Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park in south-eastern British Columbia, on Saturday.

The search operation was delayed for a day because of poor weather conditions in the area, which is only accessible by helicopter.

A sixth person in the group of skiers was still being sought.

Mounties were also investigating the deaths of two skiers in an avalanche to the north-west of the first one.

Another avalanche at Elliott Lake, British Columbia, buried four friends who were driving snowmobiles on Friday, killing one, police said.

Officials have recently warned of high avalanche danger in the mountain areas of Alberta and British Columbia.

The region had relatively little snowfall until last week, but recent cold temperatures and subsequent new snow has created the dangerous conditions.
 

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