Six women were killed in a California avalanche in the Sierra Nevada, and families of the survivors described the group as close-knit and experienced backcountry skiers who had planned the trip in advance. A Nevada County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said Thursday that crews expected to need at least another day before they could safely attempt to recover bodies and continue searching for the ninth person after Tuesday’s slide. Rescue teams found two people alive, and the search has been complicated by dangerous weather and ongoing snow instability in the Castle Peak area near Soda Springs.
Authorities said two of the friends got out alive and were rescued along with four others, including one guide. The remaining three people who were dead or presumed dead were guides, according to the families’ account shared through a spokesperson statement. The families also said they were grieving and asked for privacy, while adding that they had “many unanswered questions” about how the conditions and decisions on the trip unfolded.
In their statement, the families said the six killed were among eight close friends and were experienced backcountry skiers. The women were identified as Carrie Atkin, Liz Clabaugh, Danielle Keatley, Kate Morse, Caroline Sekar and Kate Vitt. The families said the trip was well organized in advance and that the women were equipped with avalanche safety equipment, and they said the women “deeply respected the mountains” and “were trained and prepared for backcountry travel and trusted their professional guides on this trip.”
The families’ statement also said the investigation now focuses on what the guides and their tour company knew about warnings and risks from a powerful winter storm that blasted the mountains during the trip. Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said authorities would investigate why the guides proceeded with the tour despite the forecast. California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health is also investigating whether the company violated California law.
Ashley Quadros, a spokesperson for the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, said it would be at least another day before crews could attempt to recover the bodies and continue the search for the ninth person. Quadros said, “We are on the mountain, but they are not going to be able to safely reach them,” adding that “The weather conditions are really dangerous.” Sierra Avalanche Center warned that several more feet of snow could fall around Lake Tahoe on Thursday and continue to destabilize the snowpack, and it said wind gusts along ridgetops could reach 60 mph (100 kph).
The Sierra Avalanche Center said the risk of large avalanches would remain high through at least Friday morning. It also reported that Tahoe National Forest lands in the Castle Peak area were closed to the public until March 15. Investigators and safety specialists have pointed out that backcountry travelers sometimes go out even during avalanche watch or warning periods, but the risk can change quickly and slides can be hard to detect from the ground.
Questions have also centered on what the guides knew at the time and how they assessed conditions during the storm. The AP report said it wasn’t clear whether the guides were aware of an avalanche warning, though they are trained to test the snow and assess conditions in the field. At least one guide was able to send text messages during the event, and two of the rescued people were taken to a hospital; both were later released.
The tour company said the guides were highly experienced and said it launched an investigation. Blackbird Mountain Guides said in a statement that it was mourning the loss of three guides and that its founder, Zeb Blais, said the guides were “in communication with senior guides at our base, to discuss conditions and routing based upon conditions.” The company said, “We don’t have all the answers yet, and it may be some time before we do,” and Blais said, “In addition to mourning the loss of six clients, we also mourn the loss of three highly experienced members of our guide team.”
National and local figures also weighed in. Gov. Gavin Newsom said he understood that some of his “wife’s old family friends” were among the group, and he said at a news conference Thursday that the circumstances were “more concerning and disturbing” because some victims were experienced guides. Marin County Mayor Max Perrey said some in the group were women from his city, Mill Valley. Placer County Sheriff Wayne Woo said one of the victims was married to a member of a backcountry search and rescue team in the area.
The AP report said the deaths marked the deadliest avalanche in the U.S. since 1981, when 11 climbers were killed on Mount Rainier in Washington state. It also noted other recent fatal avalanches elsewhere, including in Utah, where a snowmobile rider died and where an avalanche killed a girl in Salt Lake County, with local officials describing “courageous efforts” by the victim’s young son who dug him out of the snow.