The bodies of eight backcountry skiers who died in the largest avalanche in California history Tuesday will not be recovered Thursday due to hazardous weather conditions, officials said.
Recovery operations to extract the group off the mountains are expected to continue into the weekend, according to a social media post from the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office.
One additional skier is missing but presumed deceased.
The nine people were among a group of 15 backcountry skiers on a three-day trip to the Frog Lake Cabins led by Truckee-based outfitter Blackbird Mountain Guides. The group was returning to the trailhead near Castle Peak when the football field-sized avalanche struck. One skier reportedly shouted “Avalanche!” just before the group was overtaken by snow.
Six skiers, including one of the four guides leading the trip, survived. Two were treated at a hospital for non-life threatening injuries they sustained in the avalanche.
Some of those killed in the avalanche have been identified as parents of children in Sugar Bowl’s competitive ski program.
The sheriff’s office added that the identities of the victims will not be confirmed until the bodies have been recovered from the mountain.
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Rescue efforts that began Tuesday have been hampered by hazardous storm weather conditions, with concerns of another avalanche creating increased caution for rescuers responding to the site. Blizzard conditions prevented the removal of bodies Wednesday, though the locations of eight had been marked with poles when they were located.
The disaster marks the deadliest avalanche in California history since the 1982 Alpine Meadows Ski Resort avalanche, which killed seven people. It also ranks among the worst avalanches in North American history, ranking behind a 1981 disaster in Washington in which 11 climbers died. Several other disasters, including a 1991 British Columbia avalanche and a 1999 Quebec avalanche, have had similar fatality numbers, both killing nine.
The guide company, which warned on social media of high avalanche danger just days before the disaster, was cooperating in the investigation. The company has also said that all its guides were trained in avalanche safety.
“The Sheriff’s Office would like to express its continued gratitude to all of our mutual aid partners and volunteers who have worked tirelessly around the clock, initially to save six lives, and who have continuously worked in adverse weather conditions in an effort to bring loved ones safely home,” authorities said in a statement.
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