SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah – The body of a skier who was buried in an avalanche on Saturday in the backcountry of Park City has been restored.
Kurt Damschroder, aged 57 in Park City, became entangled in the slide activated by him and a friend while skiing in an area known as Square Top.
“I understand he was buried in four to five feet of snow, so they were able to get him out around eleven. [Sunday] in the morning, ”said Lieutenant Andrew Wright of the Summit County Sheriff’s office.
Summit County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team and the Utah Department of Public Safety had to call off recovery efforts Saturday night due to dangerous snow conditions.
“[Sunday] In the morning, with the assistance of the Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter, our search and rescue team reconvened at 7 am, “Wright said.
To get to the scene safely for the recovery effort, the crews had to perform avalanche mitigation, creating additional slides.
Summit County Sheriff’s Office
Summit County Sheriff’s Office
“That included taking some explosives in the DPS helicopter and dropping them in the area,” Wright added. “They actually triggered a lot of slides.”
The Square Top area is just outside the boundaries of Park City Mountain Canyons Village.
“Over the years, this has been an area known for being extremely deadly,” said Wright. “If someone comes close and causes an avalanche, it is usually not a good result.”
An outdoor enthusiast and experienced skier, Damschroder had all the right equipment in the backcountry.
“He had a beacon, he had a probe, he had a shovel, but as you know a lot of snow comes down, you are at the mercy of the weight of that snow and the rapid movement,” Wright added. “I understand it brought him down a long way. A few hundred meters is what our researchers described to me. ‘
Damschroder was skiing in the area with a friend, who was able to dig it out about 15 minutes after the slide was activated.
“He spent more than an hour trying to save lives until he eventually had to leave the area because of the safety … the risk,” Wright said.
“Our hearts and prayers are with Kurt’s friend and family,” the Summit County Sheriff’s Office wrote Sunday afternoon.
This is the second death from Utah avalanches in the 2020-2021 winter season. Earlier this month, 31-year-old Kevin was Jack Steuterman from Clinton overtaken and buried while snowboarding in the Dutch Draw area, also near Park City Mountain Canyons Village.
Wright encouraged people interested in backcountry skiing or snowboarding to take the Utah Avalanche Center’s daily forecasts before heading out.