Dozens of people have been injured and 200 people were evacuated after a fire broke out in a tourist hotel in the popular French ski resort Val d’Isere.
The hostel, ‘Les Jardins de la Balme’, is used mainly by young workers, many from the UK.
A 64-year-old woman was among those badly hurt after she jumped from the sixth floor of the building, which sits right next to the ski slope.
Four were taken to hospital in Bourg St Maurice suffering from the effects of serious smoke inhalation, while there were also victims with minor injuries.
Up to 200 others, including young children, were evacuated from nearby buildings, including a primary school.
The fire is believed to have started on the fifth floor of the nine-storey building at around lunchtime yesterday. The roof was completely destroyed.
An appeal has since been launched for clothes and shelter for those who had to be evacuated.
