WHITEFISH AVALANCHE!! PAGING FLATHEAD MAGS!

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 05:51 PM

Apperently there was a massive slide in the canyon at Big Mountain. 1 confirmed death and 6 missing. There are currently about 40 people probing the area but its now been a little over 3 hours

Flathead mags check in please. Danimal sent me a pm yestereday saying he was heading back there today.

**ptavv** · 01-13-2008, 05:53 PM

Positive vibes to all involved.

**ryank** · 01-13-2008, 05:55 PM

Was this inbound? Not good. This is just really bad across the board, all of these inbound slides.

++++VIBES++++

**Core Shot** · 01-13-2008, 06:12 PM

Holy fuck, thats a lot of peeps "missing"

hoping the carnage stops with the 1 fatality.

**powstash** · 01-13-2008, 06:17 PM

way too much of this happening this season. there's gotta be a better way to edumacate people and for that edumacation to sink in and prevail over poor decisions (not assuming this slide is from poor decision making, just generalizing overall)

+vibes+

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 06:17 PM

I just talked to Danimal(whew!) He said that he came across the slide just after it had happened and had to crawl over the debris. He said it was MASSIVE with a ten foot crown. A group that was skinning up the access road in the Canyon creek area (out of bounds but very popular) were caught up in it and one of them received massive injuries (Dan said that there was more blood then he had ever seen). So far, Mags are okay but some of us are still waiting to hear from friends that hit that area all the time. My boss was up there and heard that there were six missing but Danimal says he thinks it could be more than that based upon information from some bilers that witnessed folks running with their skis on their back down at the bottom.

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 06:24 PM

Originally Posted by Core Shot

Holy fuck, thats a lot of peeps "missing"

hoping the carnage stops with the 1 fatality.

At least six missing and buried for over three hours...... very likely that right now its a body search. Night is setting in out there right now.

**DirkaDirkaJack** · 01-13-2008, 06:40 PM

is that the area that is over the ridge on the skiers right side of the front of the mountain? was the slope heavily treed like that area?

**snoboy** · 01-13-2008, 06:42 PM

Damn it!

Just to clarify, this is a slack or back country area, not inbounds, correct?

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 06:45 PM

Originally Posted by DirkaDirkaJack

is that the area that is over the ridge on the skiers right side of the front of the mountain? was the slope heavily treed like that area?

Nope, the canyon is off the backside of the mountain. Its a VERY popular place for snowmobilers and lift accessed BC.

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 06:46 PM

Originally Posted by snoboy

Damn it!

Just to clarify, this is a slack or back country area, not inbounds, correct?

Correct, not inbounds.

**snobound** · 01-13-2008, 07:26 PM

Just talked to one of my friends (non mag) he said it's bad. Couldn't give much info because he was still trying to get ahold of other friends who had plans to go there today.

+++++vibes+++++ to all involved

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 07:30 PM

Originally Posted by snobound

Just talked to one of my friends (non mag) he said it's bad.

Listening to Danimal describe it sent shivers down my spine.

**snobound** · 01-13-2008, 07:34 PM

ya it's real bad. He just called back. Everyone is accounted for (whew!) but he heard only a couple were beeping. Most everyone else weren't (SHIT!) He also said this is the third time it's slide this year. Don't really know for sure tho, you might know more, Ash then I do.

**hialtitude** · 01-13-2008, 07:35 PM

Terrible news. I wish the best to everybody involved.

**summit** · 01-13-2008, 07:36 PM

Here's hoping the missing people are at the bar!!!!!!!!!!!!

**Huckin eh?** · 01-13-2008, 07:37 PM

+++++VIBES+++++ to our near neighbors to the south and anyone remotely involved or affected!
Damn there's too much of this this year.

**sfotex** · 01-13-2008, 07:39 PM

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Not good.

**KoKopeLLi** · 01-13-2008, 07:40 PM

extremely sad new for flathead mags. Hope the search was a solid effort tonight, I'll stay tuned to hear the reports.

Any obvious reason for the slide Ashean?

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 07:45 PM

Originally Posted by snobound

ya it's real bad. He just called back. Everyone is accounted for (whew!) but he heard only a couple were beeping. Most everyone else weren't (SHIT!) He also said this is the third time it's slide this year. Don't really know for sure tho, you might know more, Ash then I do.

Yup, third slide back there this year. First one was caused by a biler around dec 19th. Second one was a natural slide that caught a biler only a couple of days later.

Originally Posted by KoKopeLLi

extremely sad new for flathead mags. Hope the search was a solid effort tonight, I'll stay tuned to hear the reports.

Any obvious reason for the slide Ashean?

Temps got pretty warm the past few days. Glacier Country Avalanche issued a Jan 11th report stating that avi danger was currently rated as "Considerable" with the following analysis:

In our snowpit investigations we were finding instability associated with the recent deep snowfall and the wind and warming effects modifying it. The cycling up and down of air temperature and wind with each passing storm front has created varying density and strength layering in the near surface snow. In shear tests some weak layers were failing with little to very little force. In ski cutting of wind slab and pillowed areas we were able to trigger shooting cracks and slab failures

**scarlet begonias** · 01-13-2008, 07:45 PM

So sorry to hear this. +++vibes+++ to everyone involved & families.

This is scary, scary stuff.

**AsheanMT** · 01-13-2008, 07:52 PM

Just found this. Reports should be coming in shortly.

Dispatcher: People buried in Big Mountain avalanche Eds: NewsNow. Will be led WHITEFISH, Mont. (AP) A Flathead County 911 dispatcher says people were buried in an avalanche Sunday on the back side of the Big Mountain.

Dispatcher Tracy Finn said she did not know how many people were buried, and declined to comment on whether any were dead.

The Disaster and Emergency Services coordinator for Flathead County, Mark Peck, confirmed that search crews were on the mountain in the Canyon Creek area, but declined to comment on how many people were missing or on whether they were skiing or snowmobiling.

Peck said the area where the avalanche occurred is out of cellular range and information from the scene was slow in coming.

EDIT FOR MORE NEWS;

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Two killed, more missing in Whitefish avalanche
By The Missoulian - 01/13/08
An avalanche on the back side of Whitefish Mountain Resort killed two people Sunday, and had search teams out all day and evening combing the slide area for four or more missing people, said Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan.

The avalanche occurred on Fiberglass Hill in the Canyon Creek drainage, Meehan said.

The number of people missing in the slide is unknown, Meehan said. Rescuers also don't know whether the victims are skiers or snowmobilers.

Meehan described the avalanche as "massive," and said the slide area began high on the mountain side, is several hundred feet wide and piled up between 25 and 35 feet of snow by the time it came to a stop.

Emergency responders were alerted to the avalanche around noon, and more than 100 search and rescue people were quickly called to the scene.

By early evening the Canyon Creek area was closed to all traffic except for emergency responders.

"We will continue searching through the night if we can," Meehan said.