On Sunday in Grand Teton National Park, a small slide on Mount Moran tackled a party of three, killing one and severely injuring another.
The crew was led by veteran guide Zahan Billimoria. He has opened up about the account so others may learn from it. Read the full story over at Powder, but in the meantime, here is an excerpt:
“We took a short break where the slope angle decreased, at around 9,900 feet. We were there for approximately 30 seconds when we heard a dull sound coming from above. Thirty feet above us we saw a small stream of snow coming down, a relatively minor slough. I moved one step to the left, while the other three were knocked down the slope and over an ice bulge below them. I immediately switched my avalanche transceiver to ‘search,’ started down the slope, and soon made contact with Brook, who had identified one person to his left. I arrived and found both Luke and Stephen unresponsive on the snow surface next to each other, at approximately 9,350 feet. Stephen exhibited labored, regular breathing, with a thready pulse. Luke was not breathing, and did not have a pulse.”
