Avalanche at California ski resort kills 1 person

STOCK IMAGE OF AN AVALANCHE. INQUIRER FILES

One person was killed and another injured in an avalanche at the Palisades Tahoe ski resort in California on Wednesday, the Placer County Sheriff’s office said.

In a written statement, the sheriff’s office said there were “no further missing persons” reported in the avalanche that took place at the resort, located about 100 miles (161 kilometers)northeast of San Francisco.

The sheriff’s statement said the avalanche debris field is approximately 150 feet (45.7 meters) wide, 450 feet long, and 10 feet deep.

The office of Governor Gavin Newsom said on social media “the state is monitoring and standing by to assist” and state firefighters were moving rescuers and resources into the area.

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It was not immediately clear what triggered the avalanche, but heavy snows have been pounding the mountainous area for the past day.

The Palisades Tahoe resort said on social media the avalanche took place on the Palisades side of its mountain at approximately 9:30 a.m. local time.

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“Our Patrol and mountain operations teams are performing a search at this time,” the resort said, adding both sides of its mountain were closed for the day.

The resort, formerly known as Squaw Valley, opened in 1949 and is at Olympic Valley, California. The resort was the site of the 1960 Winter Olympics.