A snowboarder was killed in an avalanche in southwestern Colorado on Thursday, the fourth person to die in an avalanche in the western U.S. this week.
Sarah Steinwand, 41, of Crested Butte, Colorado, was caught in the avalanche in the backcountry near Ophir Pass north of Silverton. She was snowboarding an area known locally as “The Nose” when she was overtaken by the powerful snow slide, The Durango Herald reported.
A man who was skiing with Steinwand was also caught up in the avalanche, but was able to ski out of it and avoid being buried, the newspaper reported.
Staff from a nearby backcountry hut noticed the avalanche, alerted rescuers and helped the skier dig Steinwand out of the avalanche debris, but it was too late, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center reported. Twenty-seven medical and rescue team members from the area responded to help.
The death of Steinwald, who was the founder of a public relations company in the state, was the latest of four deaths this week in the West that followed a series of snowstorms.
Three people died in avalanches on Monday — one person near Lake Tahoe in California and two backcountry skiers in Oregon's Cascade Mountains.
The avalanche danger was elevated for most of Colorado's mountains earlier this week, but avalanche conditions have begun to “settle,” the Herald reported.
Associated Press contributed to this report
