An avalanche killed a skier Saturday on Togwotee Pass, Teton County Search and Rescue reports.
The skier was 36-year-old Kenneth Goff of Lander, Wyoming, Teton County Coroner Brent Blue told Cowboy State Daily on Sunday.
Teton County Search and Rescue was called just before noon Saturday to respond to a “known avalanche burial” on Togwotee Pass, says a statement the agency released Sunday morning.
An iPhone had sent a satellite text to 911, but it was unclear whether the avalanche involved snowmobilers or skiers, the statement says.
Initial reports indicated a group of four was in the Breccia Cliffs area when they triggered an avalanche.
Search and rescue mobilized, and learned those involved were four skiers who’d triggered the slide as they were ascending a skin track, the report says.
“The avalanche partially buried one skier and fully buried another,” wrote the agency. “The partially buried skier sustained a lower leg injury.”
Search and rescue sent teams via helicopter, snowmobile and on skis. The helicopter team lifted off but returned when weather conditions stopped its response. The snowmobile team also couldn’t reach the party due to the conditions, the statement says.
The skiers made it to the scene at 3:47 p.m.
They treated the injured skier and remaining members of the party, while volunteers also worked to recover the deceased skier.
Volunteers worked into the evening, transporting the injured skier via their own skis, out of the backcountry in a littler to a waiting ambulance from Grand Teton National Park, says the report.
The team also skied the deceased skier out on a sled.
The four hours’ delay is a cautionary statement about adventuring in harsh weather, the statement says.
“This serves as an important reminder of how much longer a mission can take when the helicopter is grounded, and is another factor to consider in your backcountry planning should an accident occur,” says the narrative.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported in 2021 that a person stuck under an avalanche may have no more than 20-30 minutes of breathable air.
The search and rescue agency also warned people using the “relatively new function” of texting 911 via satellite to include the nature of the emergency, the mechanism of injury and number of people in the party so rescuers know what to seek and how to proceed.
“TCSAR extends its most sincere condolences to the family and friends of the deceased skier,” says the statement.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
