Backcountry Skier Killed in Avalanche Near Lake Tahoe, CA

A backcountry skier was killed in an avalanche near Lake Tahoe on Monday, February 17. The incident occurred in the Powderhouse Peak area, a popular backcountry zone about 16 miles south of Lake Tahoe.

On Monday, after 4 p.m., the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office (EDSO) received reports of an overdue skier. The skier’s vehicle was found in a parking lot along State Route 89 near Luther Pass.

EDSO Captain Michael Lansing stated that the missing person’s friends found him, but hazardous conditions initially prevented the retrieval of his body. The EDSO Search and Rescue team returned to the area on Tuesday morning to recover the body.

The Sierra Avalanche Center (SAC) reported a “complex avalanche situation” in the region. A “persistent slab avalanche” was observed at Powderhouse Peak in the Luther Pass area at an elevation of 8,800 feet. The area has seen about 20″ of snow in the previous five days, with 10″ having fallen on Friday, February 14.

“There remains a small chance that you could trigger a large slab avalanche today that fails several feet below the snow surface and breaks wider than expected. Smaller, unstable slabs of wind drifted snow may also exist near ridgetops. Plan routes, terrain selection, and safe zones for regrouping around the possibility of an isolated, large avalanche.”

– Yesterday’s avalanche forecast

“Another large persistent slab avalanche yesterday confirms that the snowpack does not stabilize at the same rate in all locations,” the SAC stated. They warned that while this layer is becoming more stubborn to trigger, large persistent slab avalanches with severe consequences remain possible.

A preliminary report has not yet been filed on the SAC website.

Avalanche experts urge backcountry enthusiasts to exercise extreme caution and stay informed about current conditions. The SAC advises planning travel with the mindset that a large and wide avalanche could occur unexpectedly.

The fatality is the first avalanche-related death in California this season and the ninth in the United States. Last season, there was one fatality in California, when a man was killed in an avalanche at Palisades Tahoe resort.