The Suit
02-21-2005, 09:36 PM
By Michael Pearlman and Rebecca Huntington
JACKSON HOLE DAILY
A helicopter plucked an injured skier from Granite Canyon on Monday after an avalanche swept him 2,000 feet down a popular out-of-bounds couloir adjacent to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
Jackson resident Eric Rohr triggered the slide near the top of Mile Long Couloir, a north-facing chute in Grand Teton National Park, which skiers access from the resort. Rohr, who was said to be in his 30s, was at St. John's Medical Center on Monday night.
Rohr was with four other skiers, who planned to carve turns down the more than 2,000-foot couloir, which is pocked with rocks, according to park spokeswoman Jackie Skaggs.
Rohr was the first skier down the run and cut off a small slab as he entered the top of the couloir, Skaggs said Monday. He then traversed to the left side of the couloir, made two turns and triggered the slide, she said. About halfway down the couloir, he tumbled over a rock band, she said. He injured his leg and may have sustained other injuries, according to officials, who declined to give more details.
Rohr, who came to rest just 500 feet above Granite Creek, was not buried. A soft slab of snow measuring 15 to 20 inches deep at the crown of the slide released on a slick sun crust, Skaggs said.
Another skier, Ethan Valenstein, who was not with Rohr's party, saw the avalanche and called resort ski patrol. Five ski patrollers responded and alerted the National Park Service at 12:22 p.m.
While ski patrollers stabilized Rohr, a chopper carried two park rescue rangers to the scene.
The Teton County contract helicopter landed near Rohr, who was lowered on a backboard with climbing ropes to the chopper. He was flown to Teton Village and then taken by ambulance to St. John's Medical Center.
Bridger Teton National Forest avalanche forecasters rated the danger as "considerable" at high elevations Monday, meaning dangerous slabs existed and human-triggered slides were probable at elevations above 9,000 feet. Mile Long Couloir starts at roughly 9,600 feet.
"Current strong winds are moving new snow and building easily released slabs to eighteen inches in depth at the upper elevations," stated Monday's avalanche advisory. "Once triggered these slides could pull out deeper slabs from early February snows that lie upon hard slick crusts."
Avalanche forecaster Jim Springer, who wrote Monday's advisory, said that he wasn't surprised by the slide. Winds at 10,400 feet averaged 21 miles per hour out of the southwest, with gusts to 49 mph, which may have created additional loading on slopes.
"[The slide] pretty much cleaned out the couloir," said Springer. "Patrollers had no worries descending because they were on the bed surface of the slide."
Mountain resort ski patrollers triggered numerous avalanches during snow control work Monday morning, with slides releasing in Casper Bowl, the cliffs above Laramie Bowl and the Expert Chutes and other areas. According to Springer, all the slides ran on a well-developed sun crust, which formed before 2 feet of new snow fell over the past 10 days.
JACKSON HOLE DAILY
A helicopter plucked an injured skier from Granite Canyon on Monday after an avalanche swept him 2,000 feet down a popular out-of-bounds couloir adjacent to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
Jackson resident Eric Rohr triggered the slide near the top of Mile Long Couloir, a north-facing chute in Grand Teton National Park, which skiers access from the resort. Rohr, who was said to be in his 30s, was at St. John's Medical Center on Monday night.
Rohr was with four other skiers, who planned to carve turns down the more than 2,000-foot couloir, which is pocked with rocks, according to park spokeswoman Jackie Skaggs.
Rohr was the first skier down the run and cut off a small slab as he entered the top of the couloir, Skaggs said Monday. He then traversed to the left side of the couloir, made two turns and triggered the slide, she said. About halfway down the couloir, he tumbled over a rock band, she said. He injured his leg and may have sustained other injuries, according to officials, who declined to give more details.
Rohr, who came to rest just 500 feet above Granite Creek, was not buried. A soft slab of snow measuring 15 to 20 inches deep at the crown of the slide released on a slick sun crust, Skaggs said.
Another skier, Ethan Valenstein, who was not with Rohr's party, saw the avalanche and called resort ski patrol. Five ski patrollers responded and alerted the National Park Service at 12:22 p.m.
While ski patrollers stabilized Rohr, a chopper carried two park rescue rangers to the scene.
The Teton County contract helicopter landed near Rohr, who was lowered on a backboard with climbing ropes to the chopper. He was flown to Teton Village and then taken by ambulance to St. John's Medical Center.
Bridger Teton National Forest avalanche forecasters rated the danger as "considerable" at high elevations Monday, meaning dangerous slabs existed and human-triggered slides were probable at elevations above 9,000 feet. Mile Long Couloir starts at roughly 9,600 feet.
"Current strong winds are moving new snow and building easily released slabs to eighteen inches in depth at the upper elevations," stated Monday's avalanche advisory. "Once triggered these slides could pull out deeper slabs from early February snows that lie upon hard slick crusts."
Avalanche forecaster Jim Springer, who wrote Monday's advisory, said that he wasn't surprised by the slide. Winds at 10,400 feet averaged 21 miles per hour out of the southwest, with gusts to 49 mph, which may have created additional loading on slopes.
"[The slide] pretty much cleaned out the couloir," said Springer. "Patrollers had no worries descending because they were on the bed surface of the slide."
Mountain resort ski patrollers triggered numerous avalanches during snow control work Monday morning, with slides releasing in Casper Bowl, the cliffs above Laramie Bowl and the Expert Chutes and other areas. According to Springer, all the slides ran on a well-developed sun crust, which formed before 2 feet of new snow fell over the past 10 days.