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The Dexes / Avalanche / 1166963

Eventdex · Avalanche

WASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80

1166963

The record

Everything the slot carries, as measured. Series arrays are drawn above and listed here in full.

event_typeAvalanche
ncei_event_id1,166,963
episode_id189,790
begin_utc2024-05-09T15:44:00+00:00
end_utc2024-05-09T15:49:00+00:00
stateUTAH
cz_typeZ
cz_nameWASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80
deaths_direct2
deaths_indirect0
injuries_direct1
injuries_indirect0
damage_property0.00K
damage_crops0.00K
wfo_sourcePark/Forest Service
episode_narrativeA cold season type of trough and associated surface features moved through Utah in early May. Ahead of the system, strong synoptic wind gusts occurred throughout portions of the state. While wind gusts decreased following a cold frontal passage, precipitation increased. Periods of post-frontal precipitation then continued in the unsettled northwesterly flow as the trough shifted through the region. Given anomalously cold air associated with the trough, some area mountains received Winter Storm levels of snow, and sub-warning snow amounts were even observed in some lower elevation valley locations. Following the systems departure, a fatal avalanche occurred involving multiple backcountry skiers.
event_narrativeA group of three backcountry skiers set out early in the morning to ski in the Big Willow Aprons area near Lone Peak. After skiing for several hours without issue, an unintentionally triggered soft slab avalanche occurred on the north aspect of the slope (approximately 40 degree angle) around 10,600 feet elevation. The avalanche was approximately 18 inches deep, 150 feet wide, and had a vertical run of 800 feet. All three skiers were caught by the avalanche. One skier was partially buried and was able to self-extricate. After self-extricating, the skier attempted to find the transceiver signal of the buried skiers. Approximately 13 minutes after the avalanche, the skier successfully probed one of the buried skiers and uncovered them, but they were ultimately unresponsive when rescue breaths were attempted. In the subsequent minutes, the second buried skier was probed and uncovered, but also found to be unresponsive to any resuscitation attempts. Around 1-1.5 hours after the avalanche, a helicopter ambulance was able to hoist the injured skier out, and this skier was subsequently taken to the hospital and released later in the day. Due to unfavorable weather, search and rescue recovered the deceased skiers bodies the following day.
year2,024

Provenance

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Storage: spine

WASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80 — Avalanche — TerraPulse