Man carried 1,500 feet by northern Arizona avalanche

[azdesertfather]

Man carried 1,500 feet by northern Arizona avalanche

Allison Hurtado
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 5, 2010 09:35 PM

An experienced skier was taken about 1,500 feet in an avalanche Friday, Coconino County officials said.

The Coconino County Sheriff's Office responded to a 911 call around 1:30 p.m. that a 36-year-old man had been carried away in an avalanche on the north side of Fremont Peak, which is part of the San Francisco Peaks of northern Arizona.

Emergency crews were able to locate the man with help from a Department of Public Safety helicopter.

The man had gotten himself out of the snow and was OK. He refused to be taken to a hospital, said Sgt. Aaron Dick, coordinator for the Coconino County Sheriff's Department search and rescue team.

Dick said the man was an experienced skier with all the proper equipment for handling avalanches. He was with two other people and was skiing ahead of them when the slope fractured and caused the avalanche.

[chumley]

From the Daily Sun:

Coconino County authorities say a skier has been rescued after being briefly trapped in an avalanche on the north side of Fremont Peak.

The county Sheriff's Department says the 36-year-old Flagstaff man was dragged more than a quarter mile and dropped approximately 900 feet in elevation.

Emergency communications officials received a distress call from a skier Friday afternoon in the area of the Telemark Avalanche Path. According to the reporting party, one of the three skiers in the group was caught in an avalanche and was buried under the snow.

However, the victim was able to extricate himself and all three members of the skiing party were located near Doyle Springs. The man refused treatment and his name was not immediately released.

Authorities say Telemark is one of the most active avalanche paths on the San Francisco Peaks.

[big_load]

Wow, 900 feet in elevation! That guy was lucky!

Dick said the man was an experienced skier with all the proper equipment for handling avalanches.

This statement comes off a little different than he probably intended. You can (and should) have the proper equipment in avalanche country. But nothing is going to ensure that you're capable of "handling" an avalanche. An avalanche can't be handled.

[hippiepunkpirate]

I'm pretty sure I know which avalanche chute they're talking about. It ain't much fun dry, I can't imagine messing with it in the snow.

[Jim]

It's the one that runs down the NE face of Fremont and has the really brushy run out at the bottom between Doyle Saddle and Fremont Peak.

[SuperstitionGuy]

Wow, 900 feet in elevation! That guy was lucky! An avalanche can't be handled.

Sounds like the avalanche handled him!