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2025 Archive Index - All Editions

This is the second of what will probably be several catch-up emails. There was a lapse of about a month, due to some international travel it was not possible to keep this updated. The accumulated news is now being reviewed for inclusion in an email.

In This Edition:

Body of heli-skier recovered 7 months after Alaska avalanche

Oct. 8, 2025 Rescuers have recovered the body of one of the three heli-skiers killed in a massive avalanche in March, according to authorities.

David Linder, 39; Charles Eppard, 39; and Jeremy Leif, 38, were on a guided heli-skiing trip on March 4 in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood when they were caught in a “large avalanche,” Alaska State Troopers previously announced. On Friday, volunteers from the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group and the Girdwood Volunteer Fire Department returned to the site of the avalanche and discovered one of the skier’s remains, troopers announced in an update Tuesday.

The man’s body had “become caught in a log jam in the river flowing underneath the avalanche slide area,” authorities said. The remains will be sent to the State Medical Examiner for an autopsy and to confirm the identity. Officials did not reveal which skier they believe they found.

Additional flight and ground operations have been scheduled to search and recover the two other missing men, police added.
The archived file in the Avalanche Center incidents section has been updated accordingly.
More ... (NY Post)

Avalanche in Slovenia kills three Croatian climbers

Update, the avalanche was previously reported in the last News email. Information, including a few photos, has not been added to the Avalanche Center archives in the Incidents section.

Three climbers were killed in an avalanche on Sunday, October 5, beneath Mount Tosc in Slovenia’s Julian Alps, a few kilometers south of the Austrian border. The group was part of a seven-member team making their descent when a massive slide struck shortly after 9 a.m., according to Slovenian mountain rescue services. Despite an extensive multi-agency search and rescue effort, the three missing climbers could only be found deceased. The avalanche occurred after a period of heavy snow and strong winds blanketed the higher elevations of the Julian Alps, creating unstable conditions on steep, wind-loaded slopes.

Rescue teams battled severe weather for nearly two days to reach the buried climbers. “The conditions were really challenging,” rescuers from the Jesenice Mountain Rescue Service said in a statement translated from Slovenian. “It was snowing, we were crawling through the snow at times, drenched in snow and sweat. The wind was blowing and people were shivering, struggling to keep going.” The rescue team described wading through chest-deep snow and narrowly escaping a secondary slide that roared down the same gully during the recovery operation. “Just when we located the first accident victim, the scream came: ‘Avalanche!’,” one rescuer recounted. The search had to be abandoned until conditions stabilized. On Monday, search efforts for the missing two climbers continued.
More ... (Reuters)

Snoqualmie Pass avalanche control goes high-tech

The Washington State Department of Transportation says a new remote-controlled system will replace the aging artillery once used to trigger avalanches over Snoqualmie Pass, marking a major safety and efficiency upgrade for one of the state’s busiest mountain routes. For decades, avalanche control crews relied on military-grade weapons to fire explosive projectiles into unstable snowfields above Interstate 90. The goal was to trigger small, controlled avalanches to prevent dangerous slides from burying the highway below. The system, in use since the 1980s, included a World War II-era Howitzer, an M60 tank and a recoilless rifle.

While these methods worked, they were expensive, time-consuming and put crews at risk. Preparing to fire could shut down the highway for up to six hours, and crews had to work just feet from explosives. The new Remote Avalanche Control system—powered by solar panels—allows WSDOT to detonate charges remotely, without closing the highway for long periods or positioning staff in hazardous locations. The new setup allows for faster response times, shorter closures, safer operations and longer system life. The project was made possible by one-time funding from the Washington State Legislature.

WSDOT’s avalanche team consists of three full-time and two on-call specialists who also use trams and helicopters to place explosives when conditions allow. These options provide flexibility when storms or terrain limit access.
More ... (KIRO)

Avalanche Hazard: identifying risk and avalanche rescue

The best way to survive an avalanche is not to get caught in one. Being aware of the avalanche hazard and risks goes a long way. Senior Forecaster for the Scottish Avalanche Information Service, Graham Moss, is on hand with practical advice that might just save your life.
More ... (TheGreatOutdoors)