A 37-year-old avalanche forecaster lost his life last week when he accidentally triggered the natural disaster that quickly enveloped him in a few feet of snow.
Nicholas Burks caused a snowslide in Oregon while skiing down a mountain in the backcountry and could not be revived when he was found.
Burks had all the recommended equipment and training, but a survival expert told DailyMail.com that the tragic death should not deter people from preparing for avalanches.
Chris Lundy, national avalanche specialist for DailyMail.com, said a person caught in an avalanche has only 15 minutes to have a chance of survival, and having the right tools is a matter of life and death.
Nicholas Burks, 37, caused a snowslide in Oregon while skiing down a mountain in the backcountry and may not have been needed when he was found.
Burks and his friend, William Sloop, were skiing at Gunsight Mountain, near Anthony Lakes Mountain Resort, on March 6.
“Once it starts, you have 15 minutes to have a chance of survival,” Lundy said.
«The average burial of the dead in the United States is approximately one meter. “Removing that heavy, dense snow could take 10 minutes to dig them out.”
Most people will think about running, but debris flow typically reaches speeds of up to 80 mph, so specialists urge people to cover their mouths and noses with their hands.
Your arms will be buried and still if they are extended, and your cupped hands provide a small pocket of air to breathe, Lundy explained.
While it was impossible to predict a deadly snowslide, he said skiers should check avalanche.org before venturing into the wilderness.
The website pulls data from 22 regional centers in the U.S. that provide snowslide forecasts, letting people know what to expect before booking a trip to the mountains.
DailyMail.com national avalanche specialist Chris Lundy, who said a person caught in an avalanche has just 15 minutes to have a chance of survival, and it all comes down to their partner getting them out.
Online tools like Avalanche.org allow skiers to check the avalanche forecast for a specific destination. The website pulls data from 22 regional centers in the U.S. that provide snowslide forecasts, letting people know what to expect before booking a trip to the mountains.
Lundy explained that there are three main guidelines to follow when venturing into the backcountry: getting the equipment, training, and forecasting.
However, Burks was well trained in the events and was able to predict when they would occur, but a foreseeable avalanche was not what took his life.
He and his friend William Sloop were skiing at Gunsight Mountain, near Anthony Lakes Mountain Resort, on March 6.
As Burks took off down the mountain, he caused an avalanche and the snow caught up with the experienced backcountry skier coming down the slope.
A group of people at the nearby shelter saw the avalanche and immediately alerted lifeguards as they rushed to the scene.
While they attempted to perform CPR on the forecaster, Burks ultimately succumbed to his injuries and died at the scene.
It is unknown what Burk’s friend did during the event, but it is likely that they had the equipment that Lundy recommends to all backcountry skiers.
He told DailyMail.com that everyone should carry a beacon, a shovel, a probe and a backpack with an airbag, although he also noted that it would be wise to wear a helmet.
“When steep terrain only needs to expose one person at a time, there is someone else in a safe place to perform a rescue,” Lundy said.
‘There are things to do with the partner and the person in avalanche. Both of you should yell “avalanche” so that everyone is alert.
He then recommended deploying the airbag, which is essentially a large balloon that inflates if you pull on a string or handle.
The airbag will inflate in about three seconds, making users grow taller to keep them on the surface of the flowing snow layer.
But it’s not the device that keeps people above ground: it uses the physical law of “reverse segregation.”
Reverse segregation is the idea that larger objects tend to rise to the surface of a moving mixture of particles of different sizes, as occurs in an avalanche.
While Lundy admitted he has the right equipment, he said the best thing winter sports enthusiasts can do is get out of the way of an avalanche.
“Try not to think too much, because you’ll probably have a split second to get off the slope,” he said.
‘If you get stuck in the snow, fight like hell. Try swimming or whatever you can to keep your head up.
Experts urge winter sports enthusiasts to carry the right equipment when on the slopes, such as an avalanche beacon that sends location signals to others.
The skies and snowboarding also act as anchors that will take you deeper into the snow, and Lundy said it’s best to ditch the gear as soon as possible.
The snow will harden like cement in just a few seconds and if you get caught in the natural disaster, you will be trapped in place.
‘At that point there is nothing you can do. Relax to conserve oxygen, if you can do so in the heat of the moment,” Lundy explained.
Your survival depends on your partners. If you are buried alone, your chances of surviving are very, very low.
An avalanche airbag is also recommended. The device inflates if you pull a rope and prevents the snow from burying you completely
‘That’s why we encourage traveling with partners. Your companions use rescue beacons, shovels and probes to extract you.
The beacon, or transceiver, sends location signals to others, a shovel tests the snow cover or pulls out the trapped person, and a thin, foldable stick to poke through the snow for someone buried.
Avalanche beacons are radio transceivers that indicate where you are and can be worn on the body.
The device emits a radio signal that can be picked up by other transceivers to locate its whereabouts.
If someone in your group is swept away, the folding stick allows you to determine how deep they could be buried and the shovel will help you free them.
Earlier this year, four skiers were trapped in one of the disasters in Idaho.
Three were found alive and rescued that day, while the body of the third skier, Corey J. Zalewski, was found.
Janet was one of the individuals who escaped alive after being buried under the blanket of snow.
The unfortunate loss came after the first reported avalanche death during the year: a man was killed in an avalanche that was 450 feet long and 10 feet deep.
Three other skiers suffered non-life-threatening injuries and were released after initial treatment, according to the resort. Among them was an individual who suffered a lower leg injury.
Another backcountry skier died in Wyoming the same month after triggering a 50-foot-wide avalanche in the mountains south of Alpine.
David Rice, 41, was buried for about 15 minutes before being found by his partner.
“In the last 10 years, there have been 244 people killed in avalanches in the U.S. and only three percent of them occurred in open ski resort operating areas,” said Ethan Greene, director of the Avalanche Information Center. from Colorado.
But he said it is impossible to eliminate them.
“We’re dealing with Mother Nature,” Greene continued.
‘We are facing a natural danger in very complex systems in mountainous environments. “We cannot eliminate risk completely.”