A massive storm prompted multiple avalanches in a single day at a California ski resort, where three guests and a ski patroller were caught in slides.
The slides took place on March 13 at Palisades Tahoe Resort, where a skier was killed in January 2024 in an inbounds avalanche. According to a statement from the resort, the first incident occurred before the mountain opened during morning sweeps, when a ski patroller was injured
“At approximately 8 a.m. this morning, a member of our ski patrol team sustained a leg injury while en route to perform avalanche mitigation work along the KT-22 Terrain. Our team responded immediately, and the patroller was transported for further medical care.”
Following that slide, the resort posted on X to say that all lift openings would be delayed while mitigation work took place, and ultimately announced it would be keeping Upper Mountain closed.
Despite those efforts, the San Francisco Chronicle reports that two skiers were caught in a slide shortly after noon in the East Gully area. They were not buried or injured. Less than two hours later, another guest was partially buried by a second avalanche below the Fingers, near the KT-22 Lift. Other skiers were able to quickly dig the skier out and ski patrol conducted search efforts using avalanche beacons and avalanche dogs. No injuries were sustained in that incident.
The events took place following a storm system that dumped over two feet of snow in the area over 24 hours, the biggest storm there in more than two years. The Sierra Avalanche Center had marked the avalanche danger as "considerable" on that day.
Palisades Tahoe encompasses Alpine Meadows resort, the site of the famed 1982 avalanche that killed seven and is set to be the focus of a new feature film directed by Martin Scorsese and slated for release next year.
As a result of that deadly incident, avalanche forecasting and mitigation has become commonplace at North American resorts and inbounds avalanches are rare, but as this story demonstrates, they're always a possibility. Always observe closures at ski resorts, and consider sticking to groomed runs during whiteout conditions.
