Update 2/12/21: The Utah Avalanche Center just released the following full report and video. Both groups of skiers were traveling uphill when the avalanche occurred and the slide turned out to be much larger than originally reported. See the full report here.
On Saturday, February 6, two separate groups of skiers were in the Wilson Glade area of Mill Creek Canyon near Salt Lake City, Utah. According to this preliminary report from the Utah Avalanche Center, a slide was triggered on the north aspect that was 250 feet wide and 2.5 feet deep. Eight skiers were buried. Four were able to exact themselves and dig out the remaining skiers, who were dead.
Details are still emerging, but this Washington Post article offers a comprehensive look at what we know so far.
This latest incident brings the avalanche related death toll in the U.S. to 14 in the first week of February, and 21 for the season so far. It is our sincere hope that the count stops there. Stay safe, everyone.
While most of the WildSnow backcountry skiing blog posts are best attributed to a single author, some work well as done by the group.
