Search continues for missing California skier who disappeared on Christmas day

Local law enforcement in Placer County, California, are searching for a skier who went missing on December 25. Rory Angelotta, 43, was reported missing after friends told police he failed to show up for a Christmas dinner with friends, CBS Sacramento reports. 

Angelotta was skiing at the Northstar California ski resort, which was experiencing extreme weather at the time of his disappearance. Police said the missing skier scanned his pass on the ski lift around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday morning, but no activity was recorded after that. His car was found in the resort parking lot and his phone was also turned off. 

Angelotta was described as an "experienced skier" who was believed to have avalanche gear on him when he went missing, according to the Placer County Sheriff's office. He had moved from Colorado to Truckee, California, in October and worked as the general manager of the Surefoot ski shop in Northstar, according to officials. 

After he was reported missing, emergency services including Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue, Nevada County Search and Rescue and Northstar Ski Patrol were deployed to aid in the search. Rescue personnel "were on skis, snowmobiles and a snowcat during their search" but faced "high avalanche danger, strong winds, whiteout flurries, frigid temperatures and heavy snow loads" that caused them to call off the search Sunday night, the sheriff's office said.

Searchers were out until after 9 p.m. on Tuesday night after receiving a tip, but said the tracks that had been reported belonged to a bear. The search continued Wednesday morning, but the sheriff's office said that weather conditions had created challenges for search and rescue workers. 

The skier's sister, Kelsey Angelotta, refuses to give up hope that her brother will be found alive. 

"We don't know if he's walking around, or if he's hunkered down in a snow cave, or if he's injured, or buried," she told CBS Sacramento. "We're very concerned my brother's not coming home to us, but we're still very hopeful."

Officials said that knowing the specific location where Angelotta had planned on skiing could help in their search. They are urging anyone who believes they may have spoken with him prior to his disappearance to contact the Placer County Sheriff's Office. Officials said Angelotta was wearing a "navy blue Fly Low jacket, blue helmet and black goggles" at the time of his disappearance. 

"Maybe someone saw him on the lift or talked to him on the lift," Kelsey Angelotta added. "He's a pretty sociable, friendly guy. He may have told someone what run he was going to do and that could narrow down the search."