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Colorado avalanche 'buries cars' Cars buried in Colorado avalanche
(about 3 hours later)
A massive avalanche in the western US state of Colorado has buried cars and swept other vehicles off the road. A massive avalanche has hit a major road in the western US state of Colorado, burying cars in its path.
The avalanche, described by local rescue crews as the largest they had ever seen, struck at the Berthoud Pass, 100km (60 miles) west of Denver. The avalanche, described by local rescue crews as the largest they had ever seen, struck at the Berthoud Pass, 60 miles (100km) west of Denver.
A Colorado transport spokesman told the BBC early reports suggest two cars had been caught up in the avalanche. Bob Wilson, a spokesman for the Colorado Department of Transportation, said one person had been injured.
He said one person was seriously hurt and there were no fatalities reported. At least six people have been rescued. "As far as we know, everyone has been pulled out," he added.
Even though vehicles were swept off the road, they are not said to be in any danger, however details are still scarce. The avalanche was 200ft (62m) wide and 15ft deep, and buried at least two cars along US Highway 40.
The avalanche was described as 100ft (30m) wide and 15ft (4.5m) deep. Three snow storms in recent weeks have dumped more than 4ft of snow on parts of Colorado. Most traffic heading to the Winter Park ski area had already passed the site, reports say.
The site of the avalanche is on the main route to one of the Colorado's top skiing areas. "Our preliminary reports indicate that the slide covered all three lanes of the roadway, and two cars were covered and pushed off the road, " Mr Wilson said.
It happened at late-morning after the bulk of skier traffic had already passed, said Stacey Stegman of the Colorado Department of Transportation. "Our crews are saying it is the largest slide they have ever seen."
"If it would've happened just a couple of hours earlier, this would have been a very different situation," she told CNN. Colorado has been hit with three major snow storms in the last few weeks, and Winter Park, one of the largest ski areas in the state, reported 10in (25cm) of fresh snow in 48 hours.