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Accident: Snowbird Ski Resort

Observer Name
Dean Cardinale
Observation Date
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Avalanche Date
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Region
Salt Lake » Little Cottonwood Canyon » Snowbird Ski Resort
Location Name or Route
Snowbird
Elevation
9,500'
Aspect
West
Slope Angle
36°
Trigger
Snowboarder
Trigger: additional info
Unintentionally Triggered
Avalanche Type
Hard Slab
Weak Layer
Facets
Depth
2.5'
Width
60'
Vertical
500'
Caught
1
Carried
1
Injured
1
Accident and Rescue Summary

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Two local snowboarders were riding at Snowbird Ski Resort when one of them triggered an inbounds avalanche on upper Blackjack, a west-facing slope on Peruvian Ridge. As the rider started to descend the slope, he felt the snow start to move around him. He attempted to get away from the moving snow, but he was unable to move off of the slope. He descended to the slopes below the traverse in main Blackjack, where he came to rest on the surface of the debris. The snowboarder suffered injuries as a result from the ride. A skier on the traverse below heard the noise from the oncoming snow and traversed out of the way of the slide.

The slide was witnessed by people in the area. A lift supervisor witnessing the slide from across the way called Hidden Peak dispatch on the radio while the slide was in motion.

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Rescue:

When the chair lift supervisor witnessing the slide sounded the alarm, the ski patrol on Hidden Peak dispatched a search team, who arrived at the scene within three minutes of dispatch. As the patrol responded, they asked bystanders to close gates to restrict access, and quickly took control of the scene. UDOT personnel were on the radio, and acted as an avalanche guard from the highway as the hasty team started the search. The patrol could see one victim on the surface of the snow and started to look for any other people involved. After Transceiver, Recco, visual search for clues, probing and rescue dogs searched the area, they determined no one else was involved and concluded the search. Meanwhile a ski patrol medical team responded to aid the victim. After assessing the injuries they packaged and transported him to an ambulance waiting on the highway below where he was transferred to the medical center in Salt Lake City.

Avalanche:

Elevation: 9500’

Slope: 36 degrees

Aspect: West

Width: 60’

Vert.: 60’ to stauchwall - vertical of path and slide 500’.

Crown Face: Depth of crown: 70cm up to 124cm

Failure: 1st failure at 58cm at the interface of 2.0mm facets and 1.5mm facet to rounded grains. Second failure or step down happened at 34cm, facets on a meltfreeze crust.

Trigger: Snowboarder

Dean Cardinale Ski Patrol Director Snowbird Ski Resort

Coordinates