Eight skiers dead, 1 missing presumed dead, in Sierra avalanche

A

againstthegrain

Well-known Member
Location
Sun Valley, ID
"The bodies of eight of the nine skiers overcome by an avalanche on Tuesday near Lake Tahoe had been found, Nevada County officials said in a news conference on Wednesday. One member of the group remains missing and presumed dead, in what is already the deadliest avalanche in modern California history.

The skiers had been part of a group of 15, including four guides, on a three-day backcountry expedition in a rugged but popular recreational area near Castle Peak. Six others from their group were able to use a combination of emergency beacons and iPhone S.O.S. functions to contact rescuers, who braved treacherous conditions to reach them late Tuesday night."

Backcountry skiing is risky business.
 
When I saw the news about the avalanche today, I was hoping they'd be found alive, but knew the reality was that they probably wouldn't be. I find it particularly sad when people are just out to have a good time and wind up being the victims of tragedy. It's also still dangerous for the rescuers because more avalanches are forecast. I really feel for their families. May those lost R.I.P.
 
Not only is it tragic that eight skiers are dead, but that has to be one of the most terrifying ways to go. First they were swept away in the avalanche. Then they were buried alive in what some who have escaped a similar predicament described as being immobilized in concrete.

I'm a bit claustrophobic and just thinking about what that must have been like makes me anxious.
 
One of the missing or deceased individuals is a spouse of one of members of the Tahoe Nordic search and rescue team. Heart really goes out to SAR here too. Can't imagine the difficulty of having to go rescue/recover someone you know. Those guys/gals are heroes.
 
"Multiple victims in the Sierra Nevada avalanche had ties to the Sugar Bowl Academy, a private, ski-focused school located several miles from where at least eight people died, the program said Wednesday night.

Officials with the school in Norden, Calif., said they were not releasing the names or details of the people who went on the three-day expedition.

“We are an incredibly close and connected community,” Stephen McMahon, executive director of the Sugar Bowl Academy, said in the statement. “This tragedy has affected each and every one of us.”

A group of 15 skiers, which included four guides from Blackbird Mountain Guides, embarked on the backcountry expedition on Sunday and stayed two nights in huts near Castle Peak. Only six of the skiers are known to have survived.

The group had been staying in cabins known as the Frog Lake huts, which are owned by Truckee Donner Land Trust, a nonprofit land conservancy. The huts are near Donner Summit, just northwest of Truckee, at an elevation of about 7,600 feet above sea level.

Max Perrey, the mayor of Mill Valley, Calif., said that some of clients on the ski trip, including at least one who died, were mothers who lived in his city. Mill Valley is a picturesque town in Marin County about 180 miles southwest of the Donner Summit area, and many Sierra skiers have roots in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Mr. Perrey did not know whether the Mill Valley residents had ties to the Sugar Bowl Academy. “Our heart in Mill Valley goes out to the families that have been impacted,” he said. “It’s a huge tragedy and a huge loss.”"

Blackbirds Insta post prior to the storm.

"As we move into a large storm cycle this week, pay close attention to places where faceting has been particularly strong - avalanches could behave abnormally, and the hazard could last longer than normal.

⚠️Pay close attention to @savycenter and use extra caution this week!"

They know what's coming, but even that isn't enough to prevent a disaster.

 
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IrishEyes said:
I have been in that area when I went to Lake Tahoe and it is some wicked terrain near the Donner Pass.
Just visualizing skiing that after walking some of it :eek: Condolences to the families and friends.
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Boy is that the Gospel Truth. I would imagine most folks don’t know the dark history of Donner Pass.

Donner party | History, Route, Facts, & Survivors | Britannica


“ No fear“ as I used to be, there is no way this side of Hades that I would tackle that area in the winter months. They say one of the deceased skiers was married to one of the rescuers trying to find them.
 
"The families of six friends and mothers who were killed in a Sierra Nevada avalanche this week identified the victims on Thursday and said they were “devastated beyond words.”

In a statement, the families said that the women who died were Carrie Atkin, Liz Clabaugh, Danielle Keatley, Kate Morse, Caroline Sekar and Kate Vitt. The women bonded as most of them raised their families in the Bay Area and enjoyed regular trips to the Tahoe region.

“They were all mothers, wives and friends, all of whom connected through the love of the outdoors,” the families said. “They were passionate, skilled skiers who cherished time together in the mountains.”

The women embarked on a guided, two-night trip to the Frog Lake Backcountry Huts outside Truckee, Calif., that was planned well in advance, according to the statement. They were experienced skiers who were “fully equipped with avalanche safety equipment.”


The families said they had many unanswered questions and requested privacy as they grieved.
Ms. Sekar, 45, lived in San Francisco, and her sister, Ms. Clabaugh, 52, lived in Boise, Idaho.
Ms. Sekar’s husband, Kiren Sekar, 46, provided a separate statement to The New York Times recalling his wife as “authentic and unabashedly unfiltered,” a woman who spread joy and enthusiasm to her circle of friends, her children’s school and her neighborhood.

He said he and his wife were together for more than 20 years and that she raised their two children to love hiking, bicycling and skiing in the mountains."
 
againstthegrain said:
"The bodies of eight of the nine skiers overcome by an avalanche on Tuesday near Lake Tahoe had been found, Nevada County officials said in a news conference on Wednesday. One member of the group remains missing and presumed dead, in what is already the deadliest avalanche in modern California history.

The skiers had been part of a group of 15, including four guides, on a three-day backcountry expedition in a rugged but popular recreational area near Castle Peak. Six others from their group were able to use a combination of emergency beacons and iPhone S.O.S. functions to contact rescuers, who braved treacherous conditions to reach them late Tuesday night."

Backcountry skiing is risky business.
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Tragic. 😔
 
I have done a lot of skiing, but never in backcountry or unmarked trails. A skier needs to have a lot of experience with projecting the possibility of an avalanche and be ready to use the necessary equipment. Between using current weather conditions and the angles of snow cliffs, it can be most treacherous for an amateur to take on mother nature’s worse skiing conditions. Because I have never skied in backcountry, I am not experienced using the equipment.

This is a terrible tragedy.

I remember in 1993 when Heinz Mueller was buried in the Swiss Alps under 30 feet of snow and was rescued after about 3 hours of digging him out. Even experienced skiers can get themselves into trouble.
 
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That’s terrible. I am sorry that the families have to suffer through this. It had to be very scary for the skiers to get dumped. I can’t imagine skiing and the bottom falls out from under me. I would have no idea where the bottom was.

I haven’t skied in years, but it used to make we wonder about the skiers that would ski the backcountry without any markings. It kind of reminded me of the scuba divers that would swim back into the caves. Both are very high risk.

We had a friend that owned a home in Incline Village where we would stay for a long weekend. It was fun to build a fire at night.
I skied Tahoe years ago and then we would drive up to Reno and over to San Francisco. I enjoyed driving over Donner Pass and Truckee.
I used to see the cabins leveled by the heavy snow. There used to be a truck stop on top and we would eat there, but the food looked like road kill. I would see a lot of logging trucks in that area. It’s beautiful in winter.

I also remember flying over that area and seeing the skiers going downhill.
 
againstthegrain said:
"The families of six friends and mothers who were killed in a Sierra Nevada avalanche this week identified the victims on Thursday and said they were “devastated beyond words.”

In a statement, the families said that the women who died were Carrie Atkin, Liz Clabaugh, Danielle Keatley, Kate Morse, Caroline Sekar and Kate Vitt. The women bonded as most of them raised their families in the Bay Area and enjoyed regular trips to the Tahoe region.

“They were all mothers, wives and friends, all of whom connected through the love of the outdoors,” the families said. “They were passionate, skilled skiers who cherished time together in the mountains.”

The women embarked on a guided, two-night trip to the Frog Lake Backcountry Huts outside Truckee, Calif., that was planned well in advance, according to the statement. They were experienced skiers who were “fully equipped with avalanche safety equipment.”


The families said they had many unanswered questions and requested privacy as they grieved.
Ms. Sekar, 45, lived in San Francisco, and her sister, Ms. Clabaugh, 52, lived in Boise, Idaho.
Ms. Sekar’s husband, Kiren Sekar, 46, provided a separate statement to The New York Times recalling his wife as “authentic and unabashedly unfiltered,” a woman who spread joy and enthusiasm to her circle of friends, her children’s school and her neighborhood.

He said he and his wife were together for more than 20 years and that she raised their two children to love hiking, bicycling and skiing in the mountains."
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I saw a blip on the news that said one of the women who was killed was the wife of one of the rescuers. At that time, no further information was given. How terrible for these families. May they all R.I.P.
 
Terrible tragedy... but you jsut wnder that not more tregedies like this happen gicen the crowded situations at ski resorts sometimes...

Today for example...look at this.. It's half term here in the UK... and look where everyone has gone ...


Crans-Mntana Switzerland


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Half term has brought chaos to ski resorts around Europe, as video footage shows massive queues forming at lift stations.
One social media video shows a large group of people gathered around the ski lifts in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, with the person who shared it claiming they waited one hour in a queue.
Separate footage from the Cauterets ski resort in France shows a seemingly never-ending winding queue up the mountain with hundreds waiting to ski.

Although the increasing number of alpinists descending on the slopes is partly to do with the school holidays, avalanche warnings have also wrecked havoc across ski resorts, causing delays and disruptions.

Currently, parts of Switzerland and France have a 5/5 risk of avalanche warning - the maximum level, very rarely issued.

More videos taken at popular ski destination St. Anton in Austria show massive crowds waiting at the Nassereinbahn cable car, due to delays caused by avalanche danger with a warning set at a level 4.

This comes as Europe’s avalanche crisis is escalating, with 86 people including at least four Brits killed this season as severe snowfall and unstable mountain conditions have hit the region.
France has recorded the highest toll so far with 25 deaths, followed by Italy with 21 and Austria with 14, while Switzerland has lost nine and Spain eight.
 

Has skiing become more dangerous? As avalanches hit resorts all over the world, experts reveal what's really going on​


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With news of avalanches and the rising death toll on the slopes hitting headlines, it appears that skiing is becoming an increasingly dangerous pastime.
There have been a total of 86 deaths, including at least four Brits, this season as severe snowfall and unstable mountain conditions wreak havoc across the Alps and beyond.

The most recent avalanche tumbled down a steep slope near the Italian resort of Courmayeur on Tuesday, engulfing dozens of skiers.

Meanwhile, nine backcountry skiers are still unaccounted for after an avalanche struck near Lake Tahoe in California on Tuesday while heavy snow fell in the area.

Recent unpredictable weather conditions show the need for caution.

Currently, parts of Switzerland and France have a 5/5 risk of avalanche warning - the maximum level, very rarely issued.


106370941-15569837-The_avalanche_in_Val_d_Is_re_on_Friday_swept_away_six_skiers_in_-a-1_1771428163797.jpg

As such, travellers are increasingly concerned about the unpredictability of winter sports holidays with three in 10 actively reviewing recent snow conditions before booking.

This is a 50 per cent increase compared to the previous year, according to research from winter sports insurance provider SportsCover Direct.

'This is a winter unlike any we've experienced in the past few years,' says Frederic Jarry, project manager at the National Association for the Study of Snow and Avalanches in France (ANENA), speaking to the Daily Mail.

'Indeed, the number of days with high avalanche risk (four) in the French Alps and Pyrenees is high since the start of this season (January/February). This is due to two meteorological and snow-related factors we have experienced.

'Firstly, at the beginning of the season, snowfall was followed by cold, anticyclonic weather. This weather favored the formation of persistent weak layers, which were subsequently very active in the January avalanches.

'Following this anticyclonic weather, there were successive weather systems that brought fresh snow, in varying quantities and with varying wind speeds, depending on the event and the mountain range.

'These events covered the persistent weak layer and allowed the formation of slab structures on many slopes, leading to an increased avalanche risk… and widespread accidents.

'Finally, in recent days, large amounts of fresh snow have fallen on the French mountains, again leading to a heightened and significant (high, even very high) risk.'

But, with ski holidays becoming more and more popular with novices, Frederic says it's not just avalanches causing injuries and fatalities.

The increased risk we're seeing also comes from a rise in dangerous skiing.

He said: 'This year, the high number of fatal accidents and deaths is specifically due to the season's unique snow and weather conditions.

'In terms of avalanches, skiing is just as dangerous as before. The danger itself remains unchanged. As long as there's snow with a slab structure on a slope steeper than 30 degrees, the risk is present.

'Ultimately, it's people's behavior that determines the danger of the activity, not the mountain itself. The mountain, the snow and weather conditions, are constantly evolving.

'It's up to the participants to adapt their approach and know when to change their plans, abandoning certain routes to choose more suitable and interesting ones.'

Resorts are busier, equipment is faster and more advanced, and social media has inspired people to chase bigger lines and attempt riskier tricks in the park.

'That’s amazing in many ways, but it also means more people are skiing terrain that might be beyond their skill level.

'There’s sometimes a disconnect between how easy modern gear makes skiing feel and the reality of the speed and forces involved, a lot of force. A minor mistake at high speed can have serious consequences.'

'More people are pushing their boundaries. We’ve seen this through the level of progression in Olympic competition, which then inspires the layman.

'The standard of what’s considered “good” is higher, so people start skiing and riding faster, venturing off-piste, and heading into the backcountry without necessarily having the right education, understanding avalanche forecasts, carrying safety equipment, or knowing how to use it.

'The backcountry isn’t just an extension of the piste, it’s a completely different environment.
 
I live in this area and backcountry skiing is inherently dangerous. The storm was predicted well in advance and the trip should’ve been canceled.

It may have been that people pressed forward because of the money that they had spent to go on the trip and the guide/company might’ve been motivated by money to take the trip.

Once there they never should’ve left in such a horrendous storm. They would’ve been safe to stay inside the huts. I think the only mountains that get more snow than the Sierra Nevada are in Colorado. I predict that this company will be sued and bankrupted.
 
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