Two cross country skiers were killed Tuesday when an avalanche buried them in the White River National Forest in Pitkin County.

A third skier, Jason Luck, of Arvada, managed to dig himself out of the snow and survived the avalanche which occurred about five miles southeast of Aspen, Pitkin County sheriff's deputies said.

The two victims were not identified but sheriff's deputies said one victim was from New York City and the other was from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The coroner is expected to release the victims identities on Wednesday.

The trio were skiing in Sunshine Peak at about 11,500 feet in the national forest when they were overcome by the avalanche, sheriff's patrol director Jeff Lumsden said. The Aspen Pitkin County Communications Center then received a cell phone call from Luck shortly before 3 p.m. Luck told deputies his two friends were buried in snow and debris, and that they were both unconscious. However, only one of the two was breathing, Lumsden said.

When teams from the sheriff's Mountain Rescue Aspen and the West Eagle Search and Rescue arrived the two victims had succumbed to their injuries, deputies said.

The White River National Forest had received plenty of snowfall during the winter, though, the weather on Tuesday was clear, Lumsden said.

"Whenever you have snow piled on a mountain you're always in danger of an avalanche," he said.