The Italian resort of Cervinia had two metres of fresh snow.
© Twitter/Anna G MilanThe Italian resort of Cervinia had two metres of fresh snow.
Winter storms have swept across western Europe, with the blizzard conditions turning chairlifts into swings and leaving thousands of people stranded in ski resorts.

Heavy snowfall saw the avalanche risk raised in Alpine regions across Italy, France and Switzerland, and resulted in the closure of roads and railways leading into popular resorts.

Up to 10,000 tourists were stuck at the Cervinia ski resort in Italy, local media reported.

At Val Thorens in France, Europe's highest ski resort, local media reported that 20,000 skiers staying in the resort were stuck when the main access road was closed due to avalanche risk.

The Alps stretch for more than 1,000 kilometres across eight Alpine countries, including France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and Germany.



A church covered in snow in Cervinia.
© Instagram/flaviometeo_2000A church covered in snow in Cervinia.
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Clean-up after Storm Eleanor

Another cold snap is also set to hit the United Kingdom this weekend, as crews continue the clean-up after Storm Eleanor.

The storm brought heavy rain and winds of up to 155 kilometres per hour to the UK, Ireland and northern Europe.

Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses, from Ireland's west coast to France, were left without power.

In Switzerland, gusting winds blew a train off its tracks, injuring eight people.

A skier was killed by a falling tree in France, while at least 26 others were injured across the country as tens of thousands of homes lost power.

The Eiffel Tower was closed and flights to and from France were delayed as the storm made its way east into continental Europe.

The bad weather in Europe coincides with a cold snap in the United States which has seen frozen-solid sharks washing up on beaches and stunned iguanas falling from trees.