Skier Killed In Deadly Avalanche While Backcountry Skiing On Gobblers Knob In Wasatch Mountains of Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah – On Thursday, January 21, 2016 at approximately 2:40 PM, an avalanche on Gobblers Knob in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah killed 49-year-old Douglas Green.
Green was backcountry skiing with his 50-year-old ski partner on Gobblers Knob – the highest point on the ridge that separates Millcreek Canyon and Big Cottonwood Canyon. They dropped into a run called Whitesnake – a steep, south facing run.
According to the preliminary report from the Utah Avalanche Center, the skiers skied one at a time down the slope to an island of safety where they regrouped. Then the first skier dropped in and skied to another safe zone. When the second skier dropped in, the slope collapsed as he triggered the avalanche.
The avalanche propagated back to the ridgeline and a couple of hundred feet across the slope. Both skiers were caught in the slide. One skier was fully buried and one was partially buried. The partially buried skier dug himself out, conducted a beacon search and found the victim with his probe. The victim was buried 3-4′ deep. He was recovered without a pulse. CPR was initiated. A LifeFlight medical helicopter evacuated both skiers to a Salt Lake City hospital where Green was pronounced dead.
The Utah Avalanche Center has more information about weather and snowpack history, along with photos on their preliminary report. They will conduct a full investigation about this avalanche fatality.
UPDATE 1/23:
Here is the full avalanche report from the Utah Avalanche Center.
Gobblers Knob from Trent Meisenheimer on Vimeo.
We will update this post when more information is available.
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Location: Gobbler’s Knob – Whitesnake
Elevation: 10000′
Aspect: South
Trigger: Ski
Type: Soft Slab
Caught: 2
Killed: 1
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Read more about the Gobblers Knob avalanche fatality in Utah from these sources:
- Utah Avalanche Center – Accident: Gobblers Knob
- Fox13Now.com
- KUTV.com
- UAC – Avalanche Forecast 1/21/16
- KSL.com
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This is the 4th avalanche fatality in the last 7-days in the United States. The others included:
- 1/16/16 – Avalanche Kills Snowboarder On Hatcher Pass In Alaska
- 1/21/16 – Avalanche Kills Ski Patroller In The Madison Range Near Big Sky, Montana
- 1/21/16 – Teton Avalanche Kills Solo Snowboarder On The Pyramid In Jackson, Wyoming
Please be safe out there.
