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MILLCREEK — A skier who was partially buried in an avalanche in Neffs Canyon and suffered a broken leg was finally brought off the mountain Wednesday evening following a daylong rescue effort.
The 35-year-old man was loaded into an ambulance about 7 p.m., more than 8 hours after police were initially contacted. After an attempt to use a helicopter to hoist the man from the canyon failed, search and rescue crews on skis got the man to an area where snowmobiles and a sled could transport him the rest of the way to waiting paramedics.
The incident began sometime between 10:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m., when the man was skiing in the Thomas Fork area of Neffs Canyon above the Olympus Cove area, and was caught in an avalanche, said Unified Police Sgt. Melody Cutler.
The man, who was skiing alone, suffered a broken leg and an arm injury and was buried up to his waist, she said. He yelled for help for approximately 30 to 45 minutes before his cries were heard by an off-duty Unified Fire Authority EMT who happened to be recreating in the area.
"If you're going to be found when you're injured, how lucky is that?" Cutler said.
The EMT had an emergency radio with him and contacted Unified police at 11:30 a.m., who then contacted search and rescue crews.
Because of the weather, rescue crews were initially unable to fly a helicopter to the area to hoist the skier out, Cutler said. But by late afternoon, the weather cleared and a Department of Public Safety helicopter was sent to the area. However, due to where the man was positioned on the mountain and trees in the area, the helicopter was unable to position itself in a place where its hoist could reach the injured skier, Cutler said. That's when crews on the ground were forced to get the man off the mountain themselves.
The temperature in that area dropped to about 20 degrees as rescue teams worked to free the man from his precarious situation.
The slide was approximately 200 feet wide and a foot and a half to 3 feet deep, said Cutler. She reminded backcountry recreationists that the avalanche danger due to the recent snow is currently considerable.
Over the past two days, the Utah Avalanche Center has recorded 13 avalanches in Utah with the majority of them being caused by a skier, snowboarder or snowmobiler.
