A 21-year-old Swiss skier was buried under an avalanche in the Swiss Alps for 17 hours. Cedric Genoud tells us how his survival was a miracle. br br [Cedric Genoud, Avalanche Survivor]: br br "All of a sudden, I wasn't expecting it at all, an avalanche started up. At first it didn't seem enormous, it was quite small, and I thought I could try avoid it. But very soon I found myself sliding down the slope on my chin. I was then buried under 50 centimetres to one metre of snow. I knew which position I was in, and in the beginning I thought it wasn't real, that wasn't the plan. And then I realised I couldn't move my arms or legs, I could just move my head and my helmet on it. So I created some space to breathe and made a sort of chimney with the helmet." br br And so, the young skier managed to keep himself awake, shouting for help every time he heard some noise. The rescue team spotted his helmet movements. br br [Patrick Torrent, Head of Rescue Team]: br br "It's a miracle, his movements allowed it (the rescue). Only a small part of his helmet was visible, 30 centimetres. His helmet was grey. There were also stones on the avalanche site, so the movements of his helmet allowed us to locate him. " br br Cedric Genoud was skiing alone on an unmarked slope at Evolene ski station. Here is his advice to other young skiers. br br [Cedric Genoud, Avalanche Survivor]: br br "Don't ski just after a snowfall, always be accompanied. You shouldn't do that without considering risks, it takes experience and I realized I didn't have enough." br br Cedric has suffered no serious injuries and should return home in the coming days.