A number of people from Ireland are among 96 foreigners found at a top Austrian ski resort in breach of travel and lockdown rules.
It is not known as yet how many Irish people were among those found to be in contravention of coronavirus-related rules at the St Anton am Arlberg resort.
Austrian police and local health officials checked 44 hotels and lodges and found 133 people, of which 96 were given "notices."
Some were ordered to take a COVID PCR test.
They all now face fines of up to €2,180 under the Epidemic Act.
A statement from the police force in the western province of Tyrol said the tourists included Irish people, Britons, Danes, Swedes, Romanians, Germans, Australians, and Poles.
Austria went into its third national lockdown on St Stephen's Day, with stricter border measures in place that demand arrivals go into quarantine.
These restrictions were largely brought in to discourage people from entering the country for skiing breaks.
❄ Wintermärchen St. Anton am Arlberg 😍 #stantonamarlberg #arlberg #austria #snow #inTirol #tyrol #alps #shotoftheday #TwitterNatureCommunity pic.twitter.com/dwIAhHTMfn
— St. Anton am Arlberg (@StantonReview) January 30, 2021
Hotels are now only open to business travellers - but St Anton's mayor Helmut Mall said some new arrivals have registered a local business address saying they are looking for work, even though there are no jobs available.
Following the issuing of the 96 notices, District Police Commander Obstlt Christoph Patigler, said rule-breaking would "not be tolerated".
He added: "Anyone who tries to circumvent the strict legal situation must expect that they will meet the full severity of the law."
The local mayor of St Anton am Arlberg confirmed dozens of young tourists had come to the town, ignoring lockdown rules under which ski lifts are open but hotels are closed to tourists.
It comes as the Irish Government warned that going on holiday is not essential travel and could jeopardise Ireland's efforts to tackle COVID-19.
Speaking to Newstalk last week, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe said just 0.5% of recent new cases of the virus reported here have been liked with international travel.
Additional reporting by IRN
