WALLACE, Idaho (AP) — A snowmobiler has been killed in an avalanche on Tiger Peak in northern Idaho — the 26th avalanche fatality in the U.S. in February.
Robert Wheelock, president of Silver Valley Search and Rescue, says search crews and the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office were alerted to the avalanche at about 4 p.m. Saturday.
Wheelock says rescuers located a male snowmobiler, who was equipped with an emergency beacon, buried in snow several hours later. Three snowmobiling companions were unhurt. The victim’s name wasn’t immediately released.
The avalanche occurred about 10 miles (16 kilometers) northeast of Wallace. Wheelock says the possibility of avalanches in the area was considerable Saturday and that members of the Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center were at the scene Sunday investigating the incident.
Wheelock stressed that backcountry users get avalanche safety training and equipment, especially during this winter’s dangerous avalanche season that has affected the Northwest and the Rockies.
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center says it was the 26th avalanche fatality in the U.S. in February and the 33rd this winter season.
