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Photo courtesy Utah Avalanche Center
BIG COTTONWOOD CANYON -- A group of skiers accidentally triggered an avalanche near Cardiac Ridge Saturday.
According to the Utah Avalanche Center, the group was breaking a trail in the area just after 7 p.m. As they approached the top of the ridge, they triggered the avalanche about 100 feet above them. The last skier got caught in the slide and ended up buried in more than two feet of snow.
The other skiers immediately came to his aid and began digging him out. They noticed a ski pole sticking out of the snow and pulled on it. They had him out in about a minute.
The man was blue in the face by the time they uncovered him, but he is expected to be OK.
The skiers said they felt several collapses before the avalanche but didn't think there was enough snow to cause one. Officials said the wind was blowing snow near the ridge, and it's likely a wind slab collapsed on the unpacked snow.
