Four people were found safe by Las Vegas police after an avalanche occurred at a local ski mountain, authorities confirmed.
“All have been located and are safe. We are currently assisting those coming off the mountain,” the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) said in a post Monday afternoon.
Search and rescue teams were dispatched to Lee Canyon Ski Area by around 2:45 p.m. local time, and the missing person was reported safe about an hour later.
Lee Canyon, a ski resort near Mount Charleston about an hour northeast of downtown Las Vegas, received about 11.5 inches of snow over the past 24 hours, officials said. Las Vegas Review Journal.
Six inches fell Monday night, with 31.5 inches accumulated over the past seven days.
Snow is still falling and a winter storm warning is in effect for the area until Tuesday.
Police said the road leading into Lee Canyon is closed to all traffic except for local traffic.
This region is not immune to the risk of heavy snowfall.
Just last year, a hiker was killed in an avalanche on Mount Charleston, the Review-Journal reported, and residents have been advised to evacuate at least twice in recent years due to avalanche danger.
In 2005, a 13-year-old boy was killed in an avalanche in Lee Canyon when he was swept off a lift.
