Man who survived fatal avalanche tumbled 300 feet before finding other skiers, calling for help

Carter Williams, KSL.com

LITTLE COTTONWOOD CANYON, Utah (KSL.com) — The man who survived an avalanche that killed 2 group adjacent Little Cottonwood Canyon earlier this period tumbled “head complete heels” astir 300 feet earlier he was capable to flight from nan descent and telephone for help, according to a study of nan incident.

Utah Avalanche Center published a study of nan May 9 Big Willow avalanche connected Friday. Andrew Cameron, 22, of Cottonwood Heights, and Austin Mallet, 32, of Bozeman, Montana, were afloat buried and died successful nan avalanche. A 23-year-old skier whose sanction was not released was partially buried and survived nan incident.

The agency compiled nan harrowing study aft interviewing nan surviving skier and gathering information from nan tract adjacent Lone Peak Summit, conscionable southbound of Little Cottonwood Canyon.

Cameron and nan 23-year-old man who survived nan avalanche had skied successful nan area connected May 6, taking advantage of caller snow, according to nan report. A late-season storm dumped aggregate feet of water-heavy snowfall successful Little Cottonwood Canyon that week.

The 23-year-old returned to nan canyon complete adjacent 2 days and reported to Utah Avalanche Center officials that nan snowpack “seemed to beryllium stabilizing.” He, Cameron and Mallet arrived successful Little Cottonwood Canyon early connected May 9, first hiking, earlier switching complete to skis arsenic they reached nan snowfall line.

The trio — described arsenic “strong, knowledgeable upland athletes” — reached nan bottommost of Big Willow Cirque by 8:30 a.m. earlier nan group ascended nan upland together, switching to hike connected ft arsenic they reached an area astir 150 feet from nan upland ridge.

“The aged snowfall was still soft, and (the 23-year-old man) remembers not emotion immoderate supportable furniture nether nan caller snow,” nan study states. “He noticed a very thin, wind-affected furniture connected nan aboveground of nan snow, but nary indications of upwind loading (past aliases current) aliases different evident signs of instability.”

The group started to move diagonally up nan slope erstwhile nan avalanche broke, soon earlier 9:45 a.m. The unintentionally human-triggered avalanche began astatine astir 10,600 feet elevation, on nan Big Willow Aprons, sending snowfall 800 feet down nan upland astatine a width of 150 feet. Its extent was measured astatine astir 1½ feet.

It carried each 3 skiers on pinch it. The 23-year-old reported he was knocked disconnected his feet and “tumbled caput complete heels, cartwheeling down nan slope,” astir 300 feet, earlier nan avalanche stopped.

“When nan snowfall stopped moving, he was sitting upright, partially buried pinch his correct limb free and near limb covered successful snow,” nan study states. “He took disconnected his glasses because he couldn’t see, coughed up snowfall and dug himself out.”

Once retired of nan avalanche, he looked backmost for Cameron and Mallet but he noticed nan area wherever they had been was impacted much heavy by nan slide. All 3 men were wearing transceivers and nan 23-year-old started scanning for his friends.

A photograph of nan Big Willow avalanche scene. The achromatic X marks wherever nan 23-year-old surviving skier was astatine nan clip of nan May 9 avalanche and nan bluish X is wherever he ended up. | Utah Avalanche Center

The skier partially dug retired some Cameron and Mallet wrong 30 minutes of nan avalanche, but some were unresponsive aft thorax compressions and rescue breaths. He called 911 soon aft 10:15 a.m. but reported he believed some were dormant earlier thief could arrive, nan study added.

Recovery efforts were yet delayed a time because of unreality screen and mediocre visibility. The conditions were only bully for a short capable clip for crews to rescue nan 23-year-old disconnected nan mountain. He was treated astatine a infirmary and released.

Crews returned to nan segment May 10 to retrieve nan bodies of Cameron and Mallet, who had been buried astir 2 to 3 feet heavy and 15 feet isolated from each other.

“Despite their skillsets, sometimes, accidents hap pinch tragic outcomes,” nan halfway wrote successful its last takeaways of nan incident. “Mountain recreation is inherently vulnerable and moreover nan champion of america tin find ourselves successful trouble.”

A “very akin avalanche” was besides reported successful adjacent Bell Canyon astir an hr aft nan Big Wallow slide, according to nan center. The smaller avalanche carried a skier, but that individual was uninjured.

The Utah Avalanche Center compiled its latest avalanche threat appraisal May 1, but it notes, bedewed snow, caller snowfall and wind-drifted snowfall are nan apical factors for outpouring avalanches. The large wind that passed done nan area complete Memorial Day play led to astatine slightest 1 earthy avalanche.