The Swiss Alps have again been hit by treacherous weather. Winds of up to 256 kilometres per hour roared up from Italy over the mountains, weather stations said.

The high winds damaged buildings, knocked over trees and electricity pylons while heavy snow also halted traffic through the Alps on Monday.

No injuries were reported in the Swiss storms, where the wind speed increased after moist air from the Mediterranean was blown north and forced over the mountains.

In the Swiss canton of Valais, the wind made so much noise that earthquake-measuring equipment falsely indicated that there had been a tremor of magnitude 3.7, officials said.

Heavy snow south of the Alps briefly forced the closure of Switzerland's main road routes through the mountains. The Simplon rail tunnel connecting Switzerland to Italy, which had been shut because of landslide and flood danger last month, was reclosed on Monday because the snowfall threatened avalanches in Italy.

swissinfo with agencies

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