2 killed, others feared dead after avalanche buries Italian hotel (watch video)

 At least two people were killed and many others are feared dead after an avalanche buried a luxury hotel in central Italy following a series of earthquakes.

An estimated 30 people are believed to have been inside the Hotel Rigopiano spa resort when it was hit by an avalanche Wednesday night at the foot of the Gran Sasso mountain, Italy's Civil Protection Department said.

It based its estimate on guest registration and staff numbers, but said it was possible that some people had escaped before the avalanche hit.

Italian fire department spokesman Luca Cari, who is at the scene, told CNN that the hotel had been "completely slammed" in the avalanche and debris was scattered as far as 100 meters from the hotel structure, making the search area large.

The fire department said on Twitter at 4:30 p.m. that a second body had been pulled from the debris, 12 hours after rescuers reached the area.

Earlier, two people were rescued from the site of the hotel, Civil Protection Department chief Fabrizio Curcio told journalists, but rescuers using search dogs have otherwise seen no sign of life.

"We are calling out but no one is answering," rescuers told Italian state media ANSA.

Firefighters told ANSA the hotel had been "swept away" and buried by tons of snow, and that there was mostly uprooted trees and debris at the hotel site.

An elderly farmer also died in the same region of Abruzzo on Wednesday when his barn collapsed.