A possible equipment malfunction may have sealed the fate of the group of backcountry skiers killed in February’s catastrophic avalanche near Lake Tahoe, which ranks as one of the worst snow disasters California’s history.
Nine skiers perished in a guided ski trip on the infamous Donner Summit mountain pass when a deadly avalanche buried them buried in up to 8ft of snow and trapped them in a depression.
Now, Sierra Avalanche Center has revealed that some of the skiers had been wearing lifesaving “avalanche airbag backpacks,” but they were tragically not activated.
The heartrending detail was included in the final report on the terrifying accident published by the Sierra Avalanche Center on Tuesday.
An avalanche airbag backpack is a pack that consists of a large balloon that inflates within three seconds when a cord or handle is pulled.
When inflated, the ballon significantly increases the total volume of the person wearing the safety gear, keeping the user as close to the snow surface as possible.
The equipment reduces the chance of being completely buried by an avalanche.
The Sierra Avalanche Center did not specify whether the airbags worn by the skiers killed in Lake Tahoe malfunctioned or were simply not activated.
The Center’s report did not say which backpack manufacturer the skiers were wearing. It did not say how many of the skiers had the packs.
Of 15 skiers that embarked on the Feb. 17 excursion, just six survived. Many questions remain, the Center’s report admits.
Sierra Center’s latest report notes that the “avalanche occurred on a sparsely treed, cross-loaded, north-facing slope northeast of Donner Summit in the Northern Sierra Nevada” and packed “enough snow to bury 13 people, killing nine.”
But the exact dimensions of the avalanche “remain unknown,” the report notes.
The horror unfolded when “A ski guide in the group yelled ‘Avalanche,’” the report notes.
One survivor looked up to see a “wall of white with strange blurs of colors.”
The report says, “many of the details surrounding this accident remain unknown, especially concerning human factors, decision making, travel plans, specifics of the avalanche, etc.”
But authors said more details should emerge as investigations of the event continue.
A previous report published by the Sierra Avalanche Center said the skiers may have died because they were trapped in a “small depression” in the terrain.
Other reports have said that the 11 skiers and four guides on the ill-fated trip chose for terrain that was more at risk of snow slides than longer exit routes available to escape the mountain snowstorm.
The group included a party of mothers and friends from around California and elsewhere on a ski trip, plus the guides.
The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office and Cal/OSHA are reviewing why Blackbird Mountain Guides proceeded with the trip during a major storm.
Victims included Andrew Alissandratos, 34, from Verdi, Nevada; Michael Henry, 30, from Tampa Bay, Florida; Nicole “Niki” Choo, 42, from South Lake Tahoe; Carrie Atkin, 42, from South Lake Tahoe; Liz Clabaugh, 52, from Boise, Idaho; Danielle Keatley, 44, from Marin County; Kate Morse, 45, from Marin County; Caroline Sekar, 45, from San Francisco; and Kate Vitt, 43, from Marin County.
