Skier clings to tree as large avalanche sweeps down Colorado mountain, officials say

A sweeping avalanche made its way down a Colorado mountain toward a skier.

The skier triggered the large avalanche in the state’s backcountry on Sunday, Jan. 30, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center said. Instead of trying to outrun the avalanche and getting swept away, the skier clung to a tree.

“Apparently the skier was able to hold onto a tree and avoid being swept down in the avalanche,” the Avalanche Information Center said on Facebook. “The slide ran to the valley floor.”

The large avalanche was the first in Colorado backcountry to be triggered by a person since Jan. 12, officials said

In conditions when the avalanche danger is low, the chances of a person triggering an avalanche are “unlikely and isolated,” the Avalanche Information Center said.

“This avalanche also highlights why CAIC forecasters often hedge with ‘LOW does not mean NO,’” officials said. “Slides are just infrequent.”

An avalanche can happen quickly and catch people by surprise. Avalanches can move at speeds between 60 mph and 80 mph and typically happen on slopes of 30-45 degrees, according to officials.

They can be triggered by a change in the weather or by people recreating on a slope, officials said.

Skiers, snowmobilers and hikers can set off an avalanche when a layer of snow collapses and starts to slide down the slope.

In the U.S., avalanches are most common from December to April, but they can happen at any time if the conditions are right, National Geographic reported.

At least eight people have died in avalanches this season in the U.S. as of Feb. 1, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Three people have died in Colorado.

Two snowshoers and their dog were found dead in Colorado in January after they were buried in avalanche debris. A backcountry skier was also buried in an avalanche on Christmas Eve west of Fort Collins.

The avalanche Jan. 30 happened in the Gore Range, a portion of the Rocky Mountains in central Colorado.

This story was originally published February 1, 2022 at 9:11 AM with the headline "Skier clings to tree as large avalanche sweeps down Colorado mountain, officials say."