Five Britons missing after deadly Mont Blanc avalanche There were 28 people in the original group which set out to climb Mount Maudit, all of them from a variety of different nationalities, say police. Two Germans, two Swiss and two Spaniards were among the nine killed in the avalanche, police said. Two Spaniards were also missing, along with the five Britons. The 12 injured people rescued were evacuated by helicopter to nearby hospitals. There were no avalanche warnings before the "deadliest snow slide in recent years," said Eric Fournier, the Mayor of Chamonix. Mr Fournier said: "There were no weather reports forecasting an avalanche risk." Instead huge walls of snow are believed to have been created by high winds overnight, forming so-called "Wind Slabs" which are hugely dangerous when they collapse. Today's avalanche is thought to have happened at dawn, as the heavily impacted snow began to warm up and then cascade downwards. In August 2008 eight climbers - three Swiss, one German, and four Austrian - died in a similar accident on the nearby Mont Blanc du Tacul. Mont-Blanc in the French Alps (AFP/Getty Images)