Dec 19 - Avalanche on Mount Rainier buries snowshoer

from king5.com
05:46 PM PST on Wednesday, December 19, 2007

By DREW MIKKELSEN / KING 5 News and KING5.com Staff

College student swept away by avalanche MOUNT RAINIER, Wash. – Heavy snow Wednesday hampered efforts by searchers to find a 22-year-old man who was swept away by an avalanche on Tuesday.

It was bad weather that got Kirk Reiser in trouble. Reiser and 23-year-old Troy Metcalf planned on heading from Paradise up to Camp Muir on snowshoes, but when the weather deteriorated, they headed back down.

At about 1:30 p.m., Riser apparently triggered an avalanche and was swept away.

Metcalf led searchers back to the avalanche site nearly 24 hours later, but they found no sign of Reiser, in what turned out to be a limited search.

"His friend searched for him for several hours and then came out at dusk last night and reported his friend missing," said Kevin Bacher, Mount Rainier National Park.

Six park rangers, four members from mountain rescue and two people with dogs searched for Reiser. Metcalf helped try to pinpoint where the avalanche occurred, but the weather made the search limited.

"The avalanche danger is just too extreme up there at the moment. They weren't able to do a lot of effective searching," said Bacher.

The National Park Service's Web site calls the route to Camp Muir "long, arduous and potentially hazardous if the weather turns nasty."

Rangers do not think the men acted irresponsibly, despite forecasts for treacherous weather.

"A lot of people love these conditions. That's why people go out into the wilderness, because they love this. They love getting out into the beauty and the solitude of this environment, and there's always risks associated with that," said Bacher.

Family members say Reiser is a former Boy Scout with survival skills, which has everyone hopeful, despite the odds.

Reiser is a student at Edmonds Community College.