Sunday, December 23, 2012

Inbounds Avalanche at Squaw Valley Captures Three



UPDATE:
As crazy as this sounds, this avalanche blew a skier off of the lift. Read a first person account of the avalanche here:
http://www.jonessnowboards.com/blog/



Three snowboarders triggered an inbounds avalanche off of the KT-22 ski-lift on Sunday. The snowboarders were caught but avoided burial. One victim was treated at a nearby hosptital for a shoulder injury.

http://www.kolotv.com/home/headlines/All-Accounted-for-After-Avalanche-at-Squaw-Valley-Injured-One-184619981.html

This is the second reported in-bounds skier-triggered avalanche in the United States in one week. The Tahoe area has received up two feet of snow in the last 24 hours.

From the Sierra Avalanche Center's website:

The bottom line:
December 23, 2012 at 7:00 am
The avalanche danger is HIGH at all elevations on the NW-N-NE-E-SE aspects on slopes steeper than 33 degrees due to wind slabs and heavy snow loads accumulating on an already weak snowpack. Large, destructive human triggered and natural avalanches will be widespread today. Very Dangerous avalanche conditions exist, and travel in or below avalanche terrain is not recommenced.

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