Rescue services have found the bodies of eight off-piste skiers and are continuing the search for one more missing person after an avalanche in the mountains near Lake Tahoe. This is the deadliest avalanche in the US in almost half a century, UNN reports with reference to AP.
Details
Authorities have informed families that the operation has transitioned from a rescue to a search and recovery phase, Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said at a press conference.
Six other people from the same group of skiers were rescued on Tuesday. They were on a three-day trek through the Sierra Nevada in Northern California when a powerful winter storm hit the West Coast.
While they waited for rescue, the six survivors used their gear to shelter and tried to stay warm, Moon said. The survivors found three more fatalities, Moon added.
Six skiers rescued from avalanche trap in US, nine missing18.02.26, 17:17 • [views_2828]
Addendum
According to media reports, this avalanche is the deadliest in the US since 1981, when 11 climbers died on Mount Rainier in Washington state.
After the avalanche on Tuesday morning, search teams faced dangerous conditions. Search and rescue teams were dispatched to the Castle Peak area in the Sierra Nevada after a 911 call reported that an avalanche had buried 15 skiers.