Nine individuals have been recovered from the site of a fatal avalanche in California's Sierra Nevada, as confirmed by Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon during a press briefing on Saturday. The recovery operation involved a Black Hawk helicopter, which navigated the snowy, mountainous region where the avalanche occurred earlier this week.
Eight of the victims were located on Tuesday, and the final victim was discovered and retrieved on Saturday. The deceased comprised six skilled women and three professional guides who were part of a larger group on a ski trip. Six other participants survived the incident, which marks the deadliest U.S. avalanche since 1981.
Adverse weather conditions and the risk of additional avalanches had initially impeded the safe recovery process. The avalanche, approximately the size of a football field, posed significant challenges. A temporary flight restriction has been extended over the avalanche site, prohibiting drones and other unauthorized aircraft until 5 p.m. Sunday.
Officials have resorted to utilizing water for snow-breaking as part of avalanche mitigation efforts. This technique intentionally releases unstable snowpack to minimize risks for rescue teams. The mitigation work, along with the search efforts, has involved California Highway Patrol air operations, Nevada County Sheriff's search and rescue, Tahoe Nordic search and rescue, Pacific Gas & Electric, the Sierra avalanche center, and other entities.
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