A Colorado woman learned that her husband had been buried by an avalanche after never checking in as planned, and she began searching for him under the snow.
Donald Moden Jr., a 57-year-old veteran skier who was once a member of the Ouray Mountain Rescue Team, was killed Jan. 7 in an area near Red Mountain Pass known as “Bollywood.” Ouray County Plain Dealer reported.
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) wrote in a report that the 57-year-old was likely buried for more than four hours before he was found.
The avalanche was 800 feet wide and traveled vertically 400 feet, the agency wrote.
TEENAGER DEAD AT SKI RESORT NEAR POSH MOUNTAIN TOWN
Donald Moden Jr., 57, was buried by an avalanche on January 7 in Ouray County, Colorado. According to the California Avalanche Information Center, he was likely buried in snow for four hours before he was found dead. (Facebook)
Moden’s wife contacted the Ouray County Sheriff’s Office when her husband did not check in as planned, then went to the trailhead herself. She turned on her avalanche transceiver and immediately got a response from her husband’s transceiver, The Colorado sun reported. She immediately found him with an avalanche probe and called surrounding skiers for help.
In addition to his transceiver, the outlet reported, Moden was wearing an avalanche airbag backpack that never deployed.
COLLEGE ATHLETE DIES IN ACCIDENT ON SKI RESORT’S MOST HARD TRAIL
The photo shows an aerial view of the accident site. Moden’s descent began at the yellow circle and, according to the CAIC, he was found buried at the red X. (California Avalanche Information Center)
He was likely skiing when he was swamped by the snow slide, the CAIC said, and was on his seventh run of the day. He was buried too deeply to save himself, they wrote.
“He had skied Red Mountain Pass for 16 years and knew the terrain at Red Number 3 well,” the report said. “He chose the terrain that was suitable for that day, based on his previous experiences with the slope and snow cover.”
The head and toe of the Ouray County avalanche that killed Moden are on the right and left, respectively. (CAIC)
Moden skied an adjacent slope a day earlier and likely saw no signs of a dangerous snowpack, the CAIC said.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Moden’s death is the first reported avalanche fatality in Colorado this ski season. Since November 9, the CAIC has reported that 25 skiers and backcountry travelers have been caught in 23 different avalanches.
Seven of those victims were buried under snow and rubble. According to the Colorado Sun, those numbers are not significantly higher than those in previous seasons.
