One man is dead after an avalanche near Alta Ski Resort in Utah. Photo: NBC//Screenshot
The body of a man killed in an avalanche near Utah’s Alta Ski Area on February 8 was recovered one day later.
According to reports, the victim, who was in his 50s, was skiing south of the Silver Fork drainage, which sits between Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons. At the time of the slide, the weather was too rough for his body to be recovered. It was a relatively large avalanche, measuring some 150 feet in width.
“Due to harsh weather conditions, authorities decided it was necessary to leave the man’s body on the mountain overnight and return Sunday for recovery,” KUTV.com wrote. “His body was transported off the mountain around 11 a.m. on Feb. 9 and taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office.”
The victim was skiing with a friend, a man also in his fifties, who was hosptalized with a lower leg injury. As of this writing, the identity of the man who died has not been released. With the storm cycle that just pummeled the West Coast, it’s been a dangerous time to be in the mountains. Three skiers were caught in a slide in Park City last Saturday, and an inbounds avalanche suspended operations at Montana’s Big Sky last week.
