The avalanche took place near Wilson Peak, on steep, north-facing terrain.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Search and rescue teams respond to the summit of Mill Creek Canyon on Saturday, February 6, 2021, where four skiers died in an avalanche near Wilson Peak.
The skier-induced avalanche hit eight people in their early 20s to late 30s touring the backcountry in two groups, the Unified Police Sgt. Melody Cutler said. She said a group of three people were from Mill Creek Canyon and a group of five from Big Cottonwood Canyon.
All skiers carried avalanche safety equipment, including beacons, shovels and probes, Cutler told The Salt Lake Tribune. The united police first received an emergency call at 11:40 am, Cutler said. The four survivors were able to excavate the skiers who died, she added, but the bodies may not be recovered until Sunday morning, depending on the likelihood of further slides and daylight.
The four who survived had minor injuries and are off the mountain. According to Cutler, two people from each group survived.
Drew Hardesty of the Utah Avalanche Center said the victims were experienced skiers well known in the community who called their deaths a terrible tragedy.
The avalanche took place near Wilson Peak, Hardesty said, on the ridge that separated Big Cottonwood Canyon and Mill Creek Canyon. He said it happened on steep, north-facing terrain.
The Utah Avalanche Center had deemed the avalanche danger in the area “high.” Hours prior to the slide, it tweeted a warning that there was “High Danger.” Large natural avalanches at night. Dangerous avalanche conditions. Keep it low. “
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Search and rescue teams respond to the summit of Mill Creek Canyon on Saturday, February 6, 2021, where four skiers died in an avalanche near Wilson Peak.
Utah Avalanche Center forecaster Toby Weed told FOX 13 on Friday that as of that moment, 10 people in the United States had not returned from the backcountry to see their families in the previous week because they caused a deadly avalanche.
He said the avalanche danger is so high that it’s not about having the right equipment this weekend, but about avoiding the backcountry completely.
“It’s not getting any safer now – it’s getting more dangerous,” Weed said.
Forecasters expect the weakened snow conditions to persist through the end of the 2020-21 snow season, according to the FOX 13 report.
(Photo courtesy of John Diener) A slide near Wilson Peak above Mill Creek Canyon shows the site of an avalanche that killed four skiers on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021.
UPD has closed Mill Creek Canyon for recreation at least until Sunday, FOX 13 reported, but restaurants and businesses in the canyon will still be open.
Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said on Twitter that rescue teams were on the scene Saturday afternoon. Intermountain Healthcare has dispatched three LifeFlight medical planes and crews to assist, spokesman Jess Gomez said on Twitter.
Three died in an avalanche that dragged 15 people into Provo Canyon near Sundance Resort in 2003.
Gov. Spencer Cox tweeted that the dead are a terrible tragedy. He said people need to be extremely careful because of the current avalanche conditions.
Hardesty also noted that the center is aware of nearly 40 avalanches that fell in the mountains around Salt Lake City in the past week, but the “actual number is probably much higher.”
FOX 13 is a reporting partner of The Salt Lake Tribune.