A 42-year-old snowmobiler was buried in an avalanche just north of Lake Tahoe on Monday and died, despite having all of the latest safety gear and being with four other experienced riders.
The group set out from Johnson Canyon, on Donner Pass, and rode to nearby Castle Peak, according to the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office. After a dry start to the winter, the region has been battered with atmospheric river storms since Christmas, with accumulations of up to 6 feet of snow on nearby summits.
The snowmobilers came prepared. Each was wearing an avalanche beacon/transceiver, which emits a steady radio signal that can be picked up by the other beacons. If someone gets buried, others in the group can use their receivers to help find the buried comrade.
On their way back from Castle Peak, the group was caught in a large avalanche. When the snow settled, Chris Scott Thomason, of Bend, Ore., had disappeared.
His friends quickly started searching using their beacons and managed to dig Thomason out, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
But avalanche snow, which can start out loose and fluffy, consolidates quickly, hardening like concrete. Anyone trapped with their head under the surface will probably be starved of oxygen.
After Thomason’s friends freed him, they immediately started cardiopulmonary resuscitation. While they were working to revive their friend, another group showed up that included an off-duty Truckee fire department medic, who “immediately began leading emergency efforts and CPR,” according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Despite all of the safety precautions, and the presence of people well-trained in CPR to assist, Thomason did not survive.
It has been a dangerous holiday season for avalanches in the high Sierra. On Dec. 27, another snowmobiler was buried in an avalanche at Latopie Lake in Mono County. The victim was badly injured and was airlifted for emergency care in Reno.
At Mammoth Mountain, two ski patrollers who were performing avalanche mitigation work the day after Christmas to get the resort open for its busiest week of the year were caught in an avalanche. One was seriously injured; the other, 30-year-old Cole Murphy, was killed.
On Tuesday, the Sierra Avalanche Center warned that the hazards are far from over.
“Multiple people got caught in avalanches yesterday, including one fatal burial,” the center said, referring to Thomason. “Triggering an avalanche remains possible today, especially on slopes where wind-blown snow has filled in terrain features near ridges, on open slopes, and in gullies at all elevations (even lower elevations).”