Dutch Draw, where so many avalanche fatalities have happened | Photo: SnowBrains
On Saturday afternoon, three backcountry skiers were caught in a skier-triggered avalanche in Dutch Draw, just outside Park City Mountain Resort, Utah. The incident, which occurred at 1:15 p.m., prompted an immediate response from Summit County Search and Rescue and Park City Ski Patrol.
Two skiers successfully extricated themselves from the slide, while a third was buried. The unburied skiers located and rescued their companion. All three individuals subsequently descended the mountain without requiring medical intervention.
Sergeant Skyler Talbot of the Summit County Sheriff’s Office reported the avalanche’s width at approximately 120 feet.
“The three skiers who triggered the slide had ascended about halfway up the hike above the 9990′ lift before ducking a rope and traversing mid-slope. Their traverse tracks are visible in the attached photo.
The group, all equipped with rescue gear, stopped at the first red circle and observed a snowboarder riding below them. (See annotated photo below) After waiting for about a minute, the first two skiers traversed to the second red circle, triggering an avalanche roughly 200 feet above them. The third skier remained on the edge of the slide and was not caught.
One skier, a female, was fully buried, reportedly in a vertical position. Her partner was partially buried but managed to self-extricate and begin a beacon search. The initial beacon reading was 2.0, with the lowest reading at 0.5. The buried skier had her arm above her head, which helped rescuers locate her hand quickly. A group of four individuals at the top of the lift, who had two-way radio communication with the victims, ducked a rope and skied down to assist with the dig-out.
Full path photo | Credit: UAC
The buried skier reported that the avalanche came in “two waves.” She believed the first wave originated from the skier’s left and attempted to point her skis downhill to avoid being buried. As she was coming to a stop, the second wave buried her. During this time, she extended her arm upward, which aided in her quick recovery.
The partially buried skier immediately initiated a beacon search. A group of four at the lift received radio communication and skied down to assist. Rescuers first located the buried skier’s hand, allowing them to clear snow around her head before continuing to dig. She was successfully extricated without reported injuries.”
Avalanche forecast for today, February 8, 2025 | Image: Utah Avalanche Center
The Utah Avalanche Center had reported considerable avalanche danger, warning “human-triggered avalanches 1 to 3 feet deep are likely today.”
“Days like this make me nervous. Elevated danger, lots of new snow, buried facets (weak layer), partly cloudy skies, and stoke—it sounds like an avalanche accident waiting to happen.”
Dutch Draw used to be accessible by a gate at the top of the Ninety-Nine 90 chairlift at Park City Mountain Resort. However, in August 2021, the resort permanently closed the access gate following two avalanche fatalities in January 2021. Closing the popular gate at the top of the Ninety-Nine 90 chairlift ended direct chairlift access to the Park City ridgeline.
The closed sign at the access gate just off the 9990 chairlift. Credit: TownLift
The resort decided to close the gate in collaboration with the US Forest Service and the Utah Avalanche Center. Forest Service officials had repeatedly advocated for the resort to maintain access to public land outside its boundaries but said the decision whether to open or shut the gate was up to the resort, as it is on private land, reported the Park Record.
A petition set up when the gates were closed gathered almost 2,000 signatures.
Avalanche
