Two people were killed in separate avalanches in Washington and Idaho, authorities said.
Two snowmobiles were traveling on Durland Mountain in the Cascade Mountains west of Yakima, Washington, when an avalanche occurred Friday at about 6,600 feet, according to the Northwest Avalanche Center. One rider was completely buried and did not survive. The rider’s name has not been released.
“One of the riders was completely buried and did not survive. Our hearts go out to the family, friends and community affected by this tragic event,” the Northwest Avalanche Center said in a statement. “We don’t know for sure, but this avalanche likely failed in an old, persistent, weak layer of the snowpack.”
In Idaho, another group of snowmobilers was killed in an avalanche in the southern Selkirk Mountains near the Pack River drainage in Boundary County, Idaho, around 1:30 p.m. local time. Boundary County later identified the deceased snowmobile driver as Lance J. Guidry, 54, of Sandpoint, Idaho.
Wyoming skier falls 1,500 feet in Grand Teton due to avalanche
Two people were killed in separate avalanches in Washington and Idaho, authorities said. (Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket, Getty Images)
The Boundary County Sheriff’s Office and Boundary County Search and Rescue announced that three people were rescued during Friday’s rescue operation.
Their efforts were postponed until Saturday due to “high avalanche risk and strong winter weather.”
They concluded their search efforts and search teams were called out again on Saturday and eventually recovered Guidry’s body.
Doctor killed in avalanche while snowboarding in remote Colorado, the state’s first death of the season
Witnesses said the sudden and catastrophic avalanche nearly killed them, according to a Boundary County Emergency Management Agency news release.
Law enforcement is asking the public to stay away from the Fault Lake Trail area. (St. Petersburg)
“I just barely made it through the avalanche on my snowmobile,” said a friend who was riding with him on a snowmobile in Idaho, according to a news release.
The snowmobiler returned to look for his friend, who was wearing an avalanche beacon, but ultimately found him dead under the snow.
Law enforcement is asking the public to stay away from the Fault Lake Trail area.
So far this year, 10 people have died in avalanches in Alaska, California, Colorado, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming, according to Avalanche.org. (Kamerik/Getty Images)
The U.S. Forest Service’s Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center is investigating the fatal crash.
“Our hearts go out to the families and friends affected by this tragedy,” the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said in a statement.
According to Avalanche.org, 10 people died in avalanches across the United States in the first three months of this year alone. The deaths included five skiers, one snowboarder, three snowmobilers, and one other undisclosed death.
Click to get the FOX News app
These fatal crashes occurred in Alaska, California, Colorado, Idaho, Washington, and Wyoming.
There were 30 deaths in the United States during the 2022-2023 season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
