Avalanche ignites conversation about Eastern Sierra backcountry skiing during a pandemic

A snowboarder who was buried to his neck survived a harrowing avalanche with minor injuries. A rescue call was made even though the party was able to self-evacuate before searchers organized. The incident was captured on film.

By Monica Prelle

A large human-triggered avalanche in the Eastern Sierra near Bishop on Saturday, April 11, resulted in a snowboarder being buried up to his neck, but able to clear his own airway and self-evacuate with minor injuries. Still, one of his partners called Inyo Search and Rescue for help when he initially could not see the rider from the vantage point where he was filming.

The incident is a stark reminder of what everyone fears could go wrong in a worst-case scenario during the coronavirus pandemic.

“All sorts of agencies and friends and various industries are asking people to be more careful,” Inyo SAR Captain Todd Vogel said. “Nobody expects to get in an accident, but it is a time to be more cautious than usual so we don’t put other people at risk.”

Despite pleas, residents continue to ski the backcountry. This, however, is the first human-triggered avalanche reported even if there are signs of other slides in the area.

One snowboarder climbed up a steep chute in the Piute Crags (ridge elevation 12,000 feet) near Mt. Emerson while his partners stayed below to film from two different vantage points. The rider descended an east facing panel, making one large sweeping turn, then three or four smaller turns, dropping below a convexity, which released a soft slab avalanche with an estimated 10 inch-crown about 50 feet above him. That slide then triggered a much larger slab, an estimated two- to…

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