Switzerland went on avalanche alert today as fresh snow smothered much of the Alps a day before the World Economic Forum in Davos gets under way.<br/>'<br/>A bulletin from the SLF Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research in Davos showed a broad band of the mountainous country under Level 5 avalanche danger, the highest on a 1-5 scale.<br/>'<br/>In Davos, where authorities have evacuated two dozen people from homes most at risk, access roads were still open as crews used controlled explosions to reduce the chance of slides. Zermatt in southwestern Switzerland remained cut off by road and rail.<br/><br/>'''''''<br/>