A 37-year-old man, Scott Wright, was killed in a large avalanche while snowmobiling with a friend in the Monte Cristo Snowmobile Area near Rich County and Cache County in Utah. Rescue efforts were hindered by deep snow, and Wright's body was recovered several hours later. This marks the first avalanche fatality in Utah this year.
A 37-year-old man lost his life in an avalanche while snowmobiling in Utah 's backcountry on Monday. Scott Wright, hailing from Evanston, Wyoming, was enjoying a snowmobiling outing with a friend in the Monte Cristo Snowmobile Area near the border of Rich County and Cache County when the tragic incident occurred. According to the Rich County Sheriff's Office, the avalanche struck the Whiskey Hill-Beer Hill area of Curtis Creek, completely burying Wright under a massive, hard slab of snow.
His friend desperately searched for him, but there was no sign of an avalanche transceiver signal. Unable to locate Wright, his friend was forced to call 911 for assistance.Rich County Search and Rescue immediately sprang into action, initiating a search for Wright shortly after 3 p.m. However, the deep snow at the avalanche site posed a significant obstacle, delaying the rescue efforts for nearly four hours. Eventually, search teams recovered Wright's body just before 6:30 p.m. The cause of the avalanche remains unknown. Dave Sparks, whose team at Sparks Heavy Rescue contributed to the search, spoke to FOX13 Salt Lake City, describing the challenging conditions. He pointed out the immense size of the slide, noting that it was one of the largest he had ever encountered, with slabs of snow reaching five feet thick and 12 feet long. Sparks emphasized the inherent unpredictability of the backcountry, especially during this year's particularly challenging snow conditions.Earlier on Monday, a separate avalanche in Little Cottonwood Canyon resulted in minor injuries to a snowboarder. Tragically, Wright's death marked the first avalanche fatality in Utah this year, according to the Utah Avalanche Center. Last year saw four avalanche-related fatalities, while 2023 had already recorded three deaths prior to this incident
Avalanche Utah Fatality Snowmobiling Backcountry
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