After a massive storm deposited feet of snow across the Sierras, 15 backcountry travelers were caught in an avalanche near Truckee, Calif., on Tuesday. Six of them were successfully evacuated by search and rescue (SAR). According to reports on Wednesday, nine members of the party remain missing. That makes this the most significant avalanche burial incident in the U.S. in the last decade.
The group included 11 skiers traveling with four guides from Blackbird Mountain Guides. They were returning from a hut trip near Frog Lake and were navigating avalanche terrain as they exited. The avalanche occurred around 11:30 a.m., according to reports. Rescuers from Boreal Mountain Ski Resort and Tahoe Donner’s Alder Creek Adventure Center worked with the Nevada County Sheriff’s office to extract the six survivors.
Search-and-rescue volunteers took several hours to reach the stranded individuals due to “extreme weather conditions,” according to a press release from the Nevada County sheriff. Two skiers were immediately transported to the hospital upon extraction for treatment of injuries sustained during the slide.
The search for the nine remaining backcountry travelers remains ongoing, but “pending weather conditions,” according to the press release. As of 10:40 p.m. on Feb. 17, the sheriff’s department said it had no further updates and expected none overnight.
Huge Storm Creates Massive Avalanche Dangers
The storm that created the conditions for this situation is expected to deposit between 40 and 55 inches of snow across the Sierra Tahoe area. The Sierra Avalanche Center issued an avalanche warning for the area at 5 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 17. The warning remains in effect as of this writing.
“HIGH avalanche danger exists in the backcountry,” the Sierra Avalanche Center wrote on its website. “Large avalanches are expected to occur Tuesday, Tuesday night, and into at least early Wednesday morning across backcountry terrain. HIGH avalanche danger might continue through the day on Wednesday.”
Snow is expected to continue to fall in the area through Thursday, making the job more challenging for SAR. We will update this article as more information becomes available.
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