ALPINE MEADOWS, Calif. (KRNV & MyNews4.com) -- A member of the Alpine Meadows ski patrol was caught in an avalanche earlier today.
Alpine has few details at this point, but released this statement:
Today at 10:45 a.m. a member of the Alpine Meadows professional ski patrol was caught in an avalanche. The patroller is part of a team of professional ski patrollers who were performing routine snow safety in the Sherwood Bowl area of Alpine Meadows. The area was closed to the public at the time.
The avalanche was triggered by an explosive charge that had been thrown by a senior member of the ski patrol team. The patrol team members were positioned in an area that was, based on historical experience, believed to have been a protected area. The charge triggered the avalanche, which broke much higher and wider on the slope than previously observed in past snow safety missions. The patroller who was caught and buried in the debris was found within one minute and uncovered within eight minutes from the time of the avalanche. After uncovering the buried patroller, members of the ski patrol team immediately began CPR. The patroller was transported to an ambulance and then transported via Care Flight to Renown Hospital in Reno, Nev.
The patroller has 28 years of experience on Alpine Meadows’ professional ski patrol and he routinely performed snow safety in this area.
For more information, please contact to Renown Hospital at (775) 982-4100. Our thoughts and prayers are with the patroller and his family and also with the Alpine Meadows family, at this time.
