The 18-year-old man and 19-year-old woman from Weingarten, Germany fell into a gorge while skiing off-piste at the Diedamskopf resort in the Alps.

They were reported missing around midnight on Sunday. Some 30 rescue workers were involved in the search.

Meanwhile two climbers missing for more than a week on Germany’s highest peak, the Zugspitze, were presumed dead by police on Monday.

“There is just about no chance of survival with this weather for such a long time,” a spokesperson for the Bavarian police said.

The 31 and 42-year-old men from Ravensburg disappeared while attempting to complete a difficult climb between the 2,268-metre Alpspitze peak and the 2,962-metre Zugspitze. Police said they may have been buried under heavy snow after a fall.

The search for the two was called off over the weekend due to extreme winter weather conditions. Rescue operations are not expected to resume as forecasts predict continued snowfall and negative temperatures.

“The danger that they will also fall is too large,” the spokesperson said.

The first workweek of the New Year began on Monday with frosty temperatures reaching below -15 degrees Celsius, the German Weather Service reported.

The continued winter conditions have proved dangerous for drivers as well as outdoor athletes, with icy roads and snow causing traffic disruptions across the country.

New snow will continue until the end of the week, the DWD reported.

Click here for The Local’s weather forecast.