Authorities and loved ones are questioning why such experienced skiers took an avalanche-prone route during a severe storm

Authorities are looking into whether a criminal negligence investigation should be opened into the deaths of multiple skiers following an avalanche in Lake Tahoe, according to a new report.

Eight out of fifteen experienced backcountry skiers and guides have died, and one is still missing, presumed dead, after the group was hit by a 100-yard-wide avalanche on a ‘Class 3’ route, meaning a route that is prone to avalanches.

The group consisted of eleven skiers and four employees of Blackbird Mountain Guides. All were equipped with avalanche safety equipment, according to family members.

Loved ones of some of the deceased have said they have “many unanswered questions.”

Rescue team around the site of the avalanche

Rescue team around the site of the avalanche (AP)

Authorities from the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) are now questioning whether there was criminal negligence at play in the decision to take a route known for avalanches during a storm, rather than choosing to either stay in their lodging, or to take a different ‘Class 1’ route down the mountain, reports The San Francisco Chronicle.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said, “It’s important to know this is an ongoing incident.”

Moon spoke of the weather that was faced by the skiers and rescuers, saying: “Extreme weather conditions, I would say, is an understatement. Lots of snow. Gale force winds making it impossible to see.”

Cal/OSHA, the state’s workplace safety agency, has also opened a separate probe into Blackbird Mountain Guides following the fatal incident.

Blackbird Mountain Guides founder Zeb Blais said in a statement: “There is still a lot that we’re learning about what happened. It’s too soon to draw conclusions, but investigations are underway.”

NCSO and Blackbird Mountain Guides have been contacted for further comment.

Of the six survivors, one is a Blackbird Mountain guide, and the other five were guests. They are reported to have non-life-threatening injuries, though some were too injured to walk from the rescue site. This was the most fatal avalanche in the U.S. since 1981, when 11 climbers were killed on Washington State’s Mt. Rainier.

Heavy snow in the California mountains

Heavy snow in the California mountains (AP)

According to authorities, the group was on their last day of a three-day backcountry trip and left their lodging at Frog Lake Huts in Truckee, California, on Tuesday morning. They traversed northwest towards the Castle Peak trailhead, rather than east to a longer but less avalanche-prone area.

They took this route following an avalanche warning at 5:00 a.m. that morning, which stated: “HIGH avalanche danger exists in the backcountry. Large avalanches are expected to occur Tuesday, Tuesday night, and into at least early Wednesday morning across backcountry terrain. HIGH avalanche danger might continue through the day on Wednesday.”

NCSO received a 911 call reporting an avalanche at approximately 11:30 that morning in the Castle Peak area. Sheriff Moon referred to the area the skiers were in as “remote and rugged terrain.”

An experienced snowboarder and frequent visitor to Frog Lake Huts, Jim Zellers, speculated to the San Francisco Chronicle whether there were extenuating circumstances that brought the group down the mountain. Stating that the usual protocol in extreme weather would be to wait out the storm inside.

The Land Trust, the group which rented out the Frog Lake Huts, advises skiers to check each route’s Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale and daily avalanche forecasts.

Tahoe National Forest has said the incident area will be closed until March 15th “Due to the current instability of the snowpack and need to prioritize first responder access to the area, members of the public are prohibited from entering the closure area during search and rescue operations.”