2 ski patrol staff at Mammoth Mountain caught in avalanche, 1 hospitalized
MAMMOTH – Two ski patrol staff at Mammoth Mountain were caught in an avalanche while doing mitigation work after an atmospheric river dropped about six feet of snow in 36 hours, Mammoth Mountain officials said.
The two ski patrol staff were doing avalanche mitigation work on Lincoln Mountain around 11:30 a.m. when they were caught in an avalanche on Valentine's Day, according to the resort.
Mammoth Mountain officials said one person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries while the other was extracted from the scene and is responsive.
The resort's website says the area where the slide occurred was not open to skiers and riders at the time the avalanche occurred.
The mountain and lift operations closed at noon. The resort expects operations will resume on Saturday.
Palisades Tahoe also reported two small avalanches that occurred shortly before 11 a.m. on Friday. No serious injuries were reported, officials said.