Missing climber after avalanche presumed dead

zuan

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com ... ml?prmid=obinsource

Missing climber after avalanche presumed dead

A park spokesman says a climber missing after a weekend avalanche on Mount Rainier is presumed dead.

The Associated Press

A park spokesman says a climber missing after a weekend avalanche on Mount Rainier is presumed dead.

Mount Rainier National Park spokesman Kevin Bacher says the park believes the climber is a 27-year-old man from Olympia, but is not releasing his name.

Nearly a dozen people trekking to the summit of Mount Rainier were overtaken by an avalanche on the upper slopes of the mountain early Saturday. All except one were pulled from the snow by other climbers on the mountain.

A search was called off Saturday afternoon because of high avalanche conditions.

Bacher says climbing rangers are still waiting for avalanche conditions to improve to begin a ground search to recover the body.

Climber missing in avalanche on Mount Rainier
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com ... 83_climbers06m.html

At least one person is missing after a massive avalanche came down on at least four climbers on Mount Rainier Saturday morning.


One person is missing and presumed dead after an avalanche came down on climbers on Mount Rainier on Saturday morning.

The slab avalanche occurred at about 4:45 a.m. on Ingraham Glacier on the east face of the mountain, said Patti Wold, spokeswoman for Mount Rainier National Park.

The avalanche, estimated at 100 to 200 yards wide, started at 12,500 feet and sent snow sliding another 1,000 feet down the mountain.

Eleven climbers in all were overtaken by the avalanche, Wold said. Ten made it out safely, including one who was able to walk to Camp Muir.

A rescue team of park rangers and mountain guides extricated the other climbers safely from the snow.

Two of the climbers were airlifted with injuries to an area hospital by a Chinook helicopter from Joint Base Lewis-McChord. They were reported in stable condition, Wold said.

The missing climber is a man, likely from a European country, who did not register with authorities before his solo climb.

Mountaineering District Ranger Stefan Lofgren said authorities are trying to identify the man to notify his family.

Rescue crews searched the area by helicopter Saturday afternoon, with high winds keeping the craft at least 1,500 feet from the mountain. A ground search was considered too hazardous due to avalanche potential, Wold said.

The search was called off as it got dark. Due to worsening weather, the search might not be resumed for 48 hours.

The names of the climbers were not released.

Special Avalanche Statement for Olympics and Washington Cascades
http://www.nwac.us/forecast/avalanche_washington/current/

Significant avalanche danger continues at higher elevations on the volcanoes, mainly above 7 to 8000 ft

Another storm Sunday added additional new snow at higher elevations on the volcanoes to the significant recent snow deposited during several earlier strong storm systems that moved through the region last week. The increased accumulations of new snowfall at higher elevations on the NW volcanoes from Mt Hood northward through Mt Baker and in the Olympics has lead to an increased avalanche danger, especially on exposed higher terrain.

Water equivalents during this period have ranged from an inch to over 3 inches with this weather likely producing new snow amounts of 1 to over 3 feet above about the 7 to 8000 ft level. Park rangers on Mt Rainier have confirmed that significant new snow of about 2 feet exist at and above 10,000 feet, with deposits of 3 to 5 feet where intermittently strong winds produced deeper drifting. These new snow amounts taper quickly below 6 to 7000 ft with only minor amounts of a trace to an inch or so of snow recorded at the 5000 ft level.

This weather has resulted in significant unstable snow accumulations at higher elevations on the volcanoes, especially on lee slopes where unstable slabs of 3 to 5 ft or more may have developed over either previous crusts or some wet weak snow layers, depending on elevation and aspect. Early Saturday morning an avalanche accident on Mt Rainier occurred involving 11 climbers or skiers. The slab avalanche released from about the 12,800 ft elevation on the Ingraham Headwall and traveled about 1,600 ft vertical. It is believed to have been a natural release but could possibly have been initiated by the several parties on the slope at the time. The 11 were all caught with 2 complete burials and several partial burials. There remains one solo climber still missing.  Other climbing parties in the vicinity as well as NPS rangers helped with the rescue. The buried climbers were found quickly as they were roped together and rope lines quickly allowed for rescue. Two climbers were air lifted off the mountain after sustaining injuries.  The slide ranged from about 3 to 6 ft deep and appears to have initiated in an upper layer and stepped down to a deeper layer.  This serious incident underscores the fact that the weather not the calendar dictates avalanche danger on higher elevations in any mountainous terrain.

A latest storm system moved through the area Sunday and Sunday night depositing an additional 4 to 6 inches or more of snow at elevations above 7 to 8000 feet along with moderate southwest wind transport helping to further load steeper lee terrain. Decreasing showers are expected Monday, with slowly clearing skies, decreasing clouds and brief warming likely later Monday and early Tuesday before another moderate storm system affects the area and brings another surge of precipitation and winds late Tuesday and Wednesday along with lowering freezing levels. As a result of both current and expected weather and avalanche conditions, travelers venturing into higher elevation terrain in the Cascades and Olympics should be conservative in their decision making, cautious in their route finding, and factor avalanche danger into their goals and route selection for the upcoming week...as very few goals or routes are worth injury or death.

Finally, extended range forecast models indicate that a strongly building upper ridge may begin to move over the region late next week. If models are correct, the associated sunshine and freezing levels of 10-12,000 ft or more should make the storm snow that has accumulated in late May through early June increasingly wet and weak, with further significant avalanche activity likely. Please stay aware of expected weather over this time of transition toward a gradually more stable snowpack at higher elevations, and ratchet back both goals and expectations to help minimize potential avalanche involvement.

Please note that this statement does not apply to highways or operating ski areas...and applies mainly to higher elevation terrain in the Olympics...Washington Cascades...and Mt Hood...especially the volcanoes.

This statement will be updated as conditions warrant.