A man and a girl were killed in two separate avalanches in Utah in the past 24 hours, authorities said, as search teams in Northern California reported dangerous weather conditions are preventing them from recovering the bodies of recent backcountry victims.
The three separate incidents have a combined death toll of 10 and one person unaccounted for due to avalanches that have occurred since Tuesday.
The most recent victim was identified as a girl estimated to be between 10 and 13 years old.
The girl died in an avalanche that struck near Brighton Ski Resort in the backcountry of Salt Lake County shortly before 1 p.m. MST Thursday, the county sheriff’s office said in a statement.
“Rescuers located a juvenile female along the slide path and immediately provided first aid,” the county sheriff’s office said.
Authorities said the child was transported in critical condition to a local hospital where she later died.
Quin Wilkins, a detective with the Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake, told KSL that the girl was staying at Brighton Ski Resort with her family and was found “out of bounds” for recreational skiing.
He added that she did not have an avalanche beacon used to help rescuers locate those buried under snow.
Less than 24 hours earlier, a man was killed by an avalanche in nearby Wasatch County.
According to a Thursday statement from the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office, authorities were notified of the avalanche in the Snake Creek area west of Midway, located southeast of Salt Lake City, at about 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Investigators determined a man and his juvenile son were snowmobiling in the area when the avalanche occurred.
The father was buried. The son, using an avalanche beacon, located his father and dug him from the snow, but despite his efforts, the man died, the sheriff’s office said.
The identity of the victim was not made public.
“The Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and all those affected by this tragic incident,” it said. “We also recognize the courageous efforts of the juvenile involved and the responding personnel who assisted in this difficult situation.”
The Utah deaths came as authorities in Northern California said dangerous weather is preventing recovery of victims killed in a backcountry slide Tuesday.
A party of 15, including four guides and 11 clients of a tour company, were returning Tuesday from a three-day backcountry excursion when they were hit by an avalanche near Castle Peak in Nevada County.
Six members of the party were stranded and later rescued. The other nine were unaccounted for. On Wednesday, authorities confirmed eight people unaccounted for were dead and one was still missing.
On Thursday, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said hazardous weather conditions are preventing responders from safely extracting victims’ bodies from the mountain.
“Recovery efforts are expected to carry into the weekend,” it said in a statement.
“Until the recovery mission is completed, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office is unable to confirm identifications, ages, affiliations or cities of origin for the victims.”
Several victims were connected to Sugar Bowl Academy, a private school for competitive skiers in Norden, Calif., school officials said.
