Hazardous Conditions Suspend Search For 3 Backcountry Skiers Buried In Avalanche
SAN JUAN COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - Recovery efforts have been suspended for three missing skiers buried in a backcountry avalanche in the northern San Juan mountains. The San Juan County Office of Emergency Management made the announcement Tuesday night citing safety concerns for rescue crews.
In a release officials wrote, "Increased avalanche activity caused hazardous conditions for the recovery mission. Therefore, the recovery mission of the three missing skiers was suspended until the avalanche conditions are stable and first responders can reenter the dangerous terrain of the avalanche accident site."
Four skiers, all part of a larger group, were fully buried in Monday's slide, which occurred in a backcountry area known locally as the Nose, specifically located between the towns of Ophir and Silverton.
The group was able to recover one of the four who survived with minor injuries. It's still unclear what prevented them from reaching the remaining three.
"Certainly, seeing an avalanche accident that involves multiple people is something we really hope doesn't happen, and we don't see that much. That being said, this accident is very close to the fatal accident that killed two people in December, so these two accidents are in very close proximity, and both caught multiple people," said Ethan Greene, Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.
Greene said the number of human triggered slides this season has been higher than normal, especially in December -- a month that saw three fatal avalanches that killed four people.
"A lot of it is really the low snow year, or at least the shallow snowpack that we had leading up into the main winter months," Greene said. "That produced a very weak part of the snow near the ground and that's caused a lot of these avalanches."
Word of Monday's avalanche spread quickly among communities in the high country. During an Eagle County Commission board meeting, County Manager Jeff Shroll announced that the three missing skiers were among their own.
"We're just kind of patiently waiting and praying for some Eagle County and Town of Eagle folks that are not accounted for yet," said Shroll.
Shroll declined to share names, but confirmed that the missing skiers were men from the community. Two were his employees. He said they were experienced in the backcountry and on an annual hut trip when the avalanche occurred.
Shroll told CBS4 the community will need a lot of support and can lean on Eagle Valley Behavioral Health for help. They offer a comprehensive list of behavioral health resources for staff, dependents and household members.
The San Juan County Office of Emergency Management said the search could resume as early as Wednesday morning if the weather allows.
