Tragic avalanche news

The avalanche on the Snow Lake mission occurred on Sunday afternoon, not Saturday.  The party was trying to descend from the ridge, following what they thought was the safest route since they were indeed concerned about avalanches.  I didn’t get all the way to the avalanche path, so I can’t describe the characteristics of the path and the snow pack had changed dramatically due to the rain and high temperatures in the two days following the slide.  Trees played a major part in the trauma sustained by the victims. 

I can’t speak to the avalanche training of any of the individuals and to speculate would be fruitless, although I will point out that some research has shown that there is a positive correlation between avalanche education and avalanche accidents, oddly enough.  It would be best to wait until the survivor chooses to share his story with the public.  I have been on enough missions to know, that information from the news media (and blogs) is insufficient to base any meaningful conclusions about what happened, and is often erroneous to boot.  The best sources are the accident reports and statements by witnesses/survivors and those are not always available.   I hope there will be one done and posted on the NWAC site. 

Lowell – the answer to your question about what TAY can do for the ongoing search is not much at the moment.  By state law Search and Rescue (SAR) operations fall to the county sheriffs along with a set of minimum and ongoing training requirements for SAR volunteers.  SAR volunteers have to meet federal (thank you homeland security!  ), state and county requirements.  See the link below for the details.  For the current mission at Crystal, they are further restricting participation to those SAR members who are avalanche trained and are current in their helicopter certification and are willing to be hot loaded and inserted into the backcountry in not only difficult terrain, but dicey weather.   

The sheriffs have to know that everyone they deploy will have a standard amount of training, additional qualifications according to their units, plus the necessary equipment, including radios.  It is not possible for them to manage volunteers who aren’t part of the system, because there is no organizational system to support them, nor do they meet the state qualifications to be used in the field.  Nobody likes to turn away skilled outdoors people from helping in a rescue, but that is what they have to do in order to manage the scene and to comply with the law.  The sheriff’s first duty is to the safety of the rescuers.   

If people are questioning the reasoning about not using volunteers, silly rules and regulations aside, look at it this way.  Just because someone is a highly skilled skier, climber, hiker, etc., doesn’t mean that they posses good avalanche decision making, right?  It is not so different with SAR missions.  SAR involves another set of skills and experience, and while they can relate, they don’t necessarily correlate with your outdoor ability or experience.

Having said that, it is possible to become a qualified SAR member by joining one of the nine volunteer SAR units in King County.  Check out the umbrella organization King County Search and Rescue Association for more information.  kcsara.org .  There was an earlier post with great information about joining the Cascade Backcountry Patrol, from which you then can join the Ski Patrol Rescue Team.  It is a serious time commitment, I won’t deny that; but does provide a way to combine your love of skiing with public service.

Short of signing away your life to ski patrolling and/or SAR, the next thing I would recommend is supporting the Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center through the Friends, particularly their educational efforts.  I also think mentoring less experienced snow travelers, on avalanche decision-making while you are out with them, is an invaluable way of spreading knowledge through the community.  Nothing beats the example of a respected skier/boarder/rider of saying “you know, I think we should pass on this slope and save it for another day” or “what does everyone think about this slope and what is influencing our judgment?”   I know it is frustrating to be stuck here in town, wanting to help find these guys and appreciate wanting to know what you can do. 

It is sad when we have to learn mountain lessons through the misfortunes of others.

Mark M said that it occurred around 3pm on Sunday. Though other details are sketchy or incomplete, at that time it was very stormy. The telemetry had temperatures jumping above freezing after 10:00am after earlier teens and the winds by Crystal's telemetry were already blowing strongly.

I heard (from another source) that on Saturday another party had suggested to the group that it might consider exiting the valley.

This accident, as Jerry stated, is very similar to the one a couple of years ago in the same valley. It points out how important the planning phase of the trip really is.

I look at routefinding as having three phases; trip planning or macro routefinding, field observations (often before leaving the car) that lead to a reconsideration of the original route (alternative routes), and finally micro-rotefinding adjustments based on the feel of the snow underfoot and visual observations of terrain and snow conditions. These latter adjustments can be on the scale of a hundred yards or more, or very small, on the scale of a few feet left or right.

Thanks for the post Cynfisher -- good information.

It was one of my great privileges and experiences to have served on my college's maritime SAR team in St. Petersburg, FL for the four years I was there.  It was program that had started as a means to get college canoes and sailboats back safely to the docks, but had grown by the time I arrived to a full time, year round group of dedicated students with a few paid staff.  We worked closely with the Coast Guard and were involved, over the years, in many of the most significant marine accidents and disasters in the Tampa Bay area.  It was a huge part of my education and I've wanted to apply it to my more current passions for a while.

My thoughts go out to those boarders -- I think we may have passed by them at the head of Bullion Basin on Saturday, though it's hard to be sure. 

this reminded me of the TAY thread from a few months ago about joining the Cascade Backcountry Ski Patrol

www.turns-all-year.com/skiing_snowboardi...dex.php?topic=7794.0

I don't know if this group is involved in the current Crystal Mtn SAR efforts, but it could be worth contacting them to see about joining up in order to be available for future SAR needs? 

A friend of mine is part of the Cascade Backcountry Ski Patrol and is out searching today. He has been trying to get me to join their group for a couple of years. I know they need more members. It seems like something worth doing.

Robert

An interesting tidbit off King5.com. Sounds like they might have built an illicit backcountry cabin of some sort. Definitely would seem to up the chance of a positive outcome.

"Lt. Eric Honeycutt told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer they are looking for a shelter that friends say the three built over the summer. "

And more troublesome news:
www.thenewstribune.com/news/updates/story/222722.html

Per the discussion of volunteers assisting with the Crystal bc SAR effort, the following thread on cascadeclimbers.com suggests that volunteers may be of assistance starting on Friday. 

cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php...er/750414#Post750414

I suspect that if this is accurate, it will be verified officially in the very near future.  Anyone have better information?