Authorities have identified three men who died Tuesday after being buried by a massive avalanche during a guided heli-skiing trip in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood. The Alaska State Troopers on Thursday said the men were 39-year-old David Linder, of Florida; 39-year-old Charles Eppard, of Montana; and 38-year-old Jeremy Leif, of Minnesota.

Alaska State Troopers said three skiers are likely dead after an avalanche buried them in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood, Alaska, on Tuesday.

If the bodies are found, it will be the deadliest avalanche in Alaska, US, for years, say Alaska State Troopers, which is leading the operation in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood

Tuesday’s slide measured more than a half-mile long with a debris pile estimated to be 40 to 100 feet deep, authorities said.

Three skiers who had flown by helicopter to a remote mountain range were swept away by an avalanche and likely killed under the weight of dozens of feet of snow, Alaska State Troopers said Wednesday.

Authorities on Thursday identified three skiers who were buried in an avalanche in Alaska this week and are presumed dead.

Three men are feared dead after being hit by a massive avalanche while on a backcountry heli-skiing trip in Alaska, say officials. Officials believe the party is buried in up to 100ft (30m) of snow, but no bodies have yet been recovered after Tuesday afternoon's incident in the Chugach mountains about 40 miles (65km) east of Anchorage.