Coal Creek parking lot will be closed tomorrow as our teams will be in the area conducting a search for a missing person after today’s avalanche. Please avoid Taylor Mountain and other areas on Teton Pass. pic.twitter.com/VgaEvyayua
— TCSAR (@TetonCountySAR) April 2, 2020
A snowboarder buried near Teton Pass on the Wyoming-Idaho border west of Jackson Hole Wednesday is still missing as the search was called off due to darkness. Some 30 volunteers searched for over five hours on the south face of Taylor Mountain. “His ski partner did a brief beacon search but couldn’t find him,” incident commander and Teton County Search and Rescue chief advisor Cody Lockhart said.
Update on the Taylor Mountain avalanche. pic.twitter.com/salv38Vorn
— TCSAR (@TetonCountySAR) April 2, 2020
The male snowboarder, who was riding with a female partner, reportedly began the descent around 3 p.m. when the slope gave away. When she couldn’t find him on the initial search she descended to Coal Creek parking lot to find a cell phone to call for help. TCSAR put out a statement on Twitter today letting the public know that 40 volunteers were on Taylor Mountain searching today.
The avalanche conditions were deemed moderate to considerable in many parts of the West this week after a series of storms. The Utah Avalanche Center reported 11 human triggered avalanches in the last week. Search and Rescue officials are asking people to avoid Teton Pass and avalanche experts in general are requesting that backcountry travelers use extreme caution due to the current Coronavirus health crisis.
