“The entire slide released, [was] an approximate width of 100′, and we estimate that it traveled 1,500 feet in total…He was inverted and fully buried under 4-5 feet of snow. I was able to dig him out using my hands and (a) shovel. I estimate he was under for (10-15 min total).”– Bryan, Skier in Avalanche.
If you are a backcountry skier on the East Coast, this is a good article to read. The Adirondack Daily Enterprise reports that last Saturday, there was a large avalanche that was triggered by skiers in the Adirondacks. The situation occurred on the Agnel Slides on Wright Peak, which were formed by Hurricane Floyd in 1999 and expanded by Hurricane Irene in 2011. The crown of the avalanche was 2.5 feet deep at its peak, traveled one thousand feet down the mountain, and had a width of about one hundred and fifty feet. The skiers were pushed one hundred and fifty feet down the slope, and one was fully buried and not responsive. The other skier was able to unbury the engulfed victim thanks to him carrying a beacon, and he regained consciousness closely after. Neither sustained any injuries.
Two prior major incidents have occurred on the Angel Slides. In 2000, an avalanche caught a couple of skiers and killed a twenty-seven-year-old Toma Vcarich. It shocked New Yorks’s backcountry community, and the slides were promptly renamed Angel Slides to commemorate Toma. In 2010, an avalanche partially buried two skiers, but luckily both survived without injuries. If you are planning to go into the backcountry this weekend, remember to plan ahead, bring avalanche gear(beacon, probe, and shovel), and go with a friend. The posts describing the avalanche are below:
Image Credits: Adirondack Powder Skiing Association, @adkavy
