One of eight skiers killed in a horrific avalanche Tuesday north of Lake Tahoe was married to a search and rescue team member, officials revealed.
The tragic coincidence was confirmed during a grim news conference nearly 24 hours after the snowy disaster — the deadliest in California’s modern history.
One of eight skiers killed in a horrific avalanche Tuesday north of Lake Tahoe was married to a search and rescue team member, officials revealed. REUTERS“This incident has specifically struck our organization and that team hard as one of the nine missing decedents is a spouse of one of our Tahoe Nordic search and rescue team members,” Placer County Sheriff Wayne Woo told reporters Wednesday.
Here are the latest stories on the California Avalanche:
- First photo from site of deadly Lake Tahoe avalanche — as rescuer speaks out from snowed-in huts
- Mom from wealthy Bay Area enclave identified as victim in horrorific Tahoe avalanche
- Anatomy of the avalanche tragedy: how a ski trip turned into a deadly descent
- Ski academy rocked as ‘multiple’ Tahoe avalanche deaths linked to youth school parents
Sheriff’s officials later clarified the spouse — a volunteer with the Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue Team — didn’t take part in this week’s search, KTVU first reported.
“One of the nine missing decedents is a spouse of one of our Tahoe Nordic search and rescue team members,” Placer County Sheriff Wayne Woo told reporters. REUTERSThe devastating avalanche struck a party of 15 skiers — four guides with Blackbird Mountain Guides and 11 clients — as they returned from a three-day excursion in the remote mountains near Lake Tahoe.
At least eight died as a snow slide the size of a football field hit, with one more missing and presumed dead, officials said.
The tragedy prompted a desperate search by a slew of agencies, including the Tahoe rescue team.
Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters
California Post News: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, YouTube, WhatsApp, LinkedIn
California Post SportsFacebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, X
California Post Opinion
California Post Newsletters: Sign up here!
California Post App: Download here!
Home delivery: Sign up here!
Page Six Hollywood: Sign up here!
But the perilous effort was hampered by dreadful winter weather, including several feet of freshly fallen snow, as well as the continuing threat of avalanche.
Responders were able to rescue six survivors who bivouacked under tarps for hours as they corresponded with authorities using the iPhone’s SOS feature, officials said.
The miserably unsafe conditions, however, prevented responders from removing the victim’s bodies.
“Avalanche victims cannot be safely extracted off the mountain today,” the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Thursday. “Recovery efforts are expected to carry into the weekend.”
The victim’s identities remained publicly unknown into Thursday, although Mill Valley Mayor Max Perrey revealed that one of the dead was a mother from the wealthy Bay Area enclave.
Perrey added other victims were also believed to be from the city.
Staff with the Sugar Bowl ski academy also said a group of mothers were among the victims. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the Mill Valley victim skied with the academy.
A representative for Tahoe Nordic Search declined to comment until all the deceased are recovered.
