A backcountry skier walked away unharmed after triggering an avalanche Thursday afternoon at Turnagain Pass in Chugach National Forest.
, the 350-foot-wide avalanche slid downhill for about 1,000 feet and completely buried the skier, who wasn鈥檛 named. Though his head was about a foot beneath the snow, the man could move his arm enough to uncover his head. His companion, who had skied to the side of the avalanche, helped dig him out.
鈥淭hey were pretty rattled,鈥 avalanche forecaster John Fitzgerald told the Dispatch News. 鈥淏ut they are regulars up there [in Turnagain Pass] and they realize the gravity of being caught and buried.鈥 The National Forest had posted an avalanche warning for the day, but at least 20 skiers and snowboarders were on the mountain, Fitzgerald said.
The chances of surviving a complete burial in an avalanche are especially low. Many of the skiers who have been so lucky in the past few years (including one whose ordeal was ) owe it to avalanche airbags. The pack keeps the wearer close to the surface, increasing the chances of surviving a slide.