Utah Skier Amazingly Survived Avalanche By Clinging To Tree, Saved 2 Others

A skier was caught in a Utah avalanche that killed four people, but survived by clinging to a nearby tree before later helping to save two others.

The avalanche, that happened on Saturday, buried six skiers from two separate groups.

Once the snow stopped barreling down the mountain, a surviving skier let go of the tree and linked up with another skier from his group. According to forecaster Drew Hardesty with the U.S. Forest Service Utah Avalanche center, the two searched for others that were buried.

The two men, who haven't yet been publicly identified, followed signals from avalanche beacons and dug through the packed snow to free two of the people. Both of them were from the other group.

Hardesty told KSL, "This is really amazing. To be caught, grab a tree, go down and save two lives is really something."

The two men couldn't reach their friends in time, however, and two women who were in their twenties died. Those deaths made this avalanche the deadliest in a popular backcountry ski area in nearly 30 years.

This winter has been especially deadly in the U.S. as skiers are becoming more interested in backcountry skiing to avoid crowds during the pandemic.

Photo: Getty Images