TRUCKEE, Calif. – The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) said Thursday that, due to hazardous weather conditions, they cannot safely extract the avalanche victims from the mountain today.
Recovery efforts are expected to carry into the weekend.
“Until the recovery mission is completed, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office is unable to confirm the identifications, ages, affiliations, or cities of origin for the victims,” said the agency on Facebook.
The deadly avalanche occurred on February 17 near Castle Peak, north of Donner Summit. Fifteen backcountry skiers and guides were wrapping up a three-day trip to the Frog Lake huts and skiing out when they were involved in the avalanche. Six people have been rescued, with eight found deceased and one still missing. The Blackbird Mountain Guides trip included four guides and 11 guests, with nine of them women and six men. Reports state this was an annual trip for mothers of some Sugar Bowl Academy skiers and students.
NCSO said they would like to express their continued gratitude to all of its 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. These agencies have included: Nevada County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue, Placer County Sheriff’s Office, Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue, Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, Washoe County Search and Rescue, Truckee Fire, Careflight Truckee, California Office of Emergency Services, and Tahoe National Forest Service. They also wanted to acknowledge and thank Tahoe Donner’s Alder Creek Adventure Center and Boreal Mountain Ski Resort, both of which opened their facilities to the teams to aid the incident command operations.
No additional press conferences are scheduled at this time.