Rescuers search for 10 skiers missing in California avalanche
Dozens of emergency workers are searching for a skier lost in the avalanche.
Six backcountry skiers were stranded and 10 others were missing after a powerful winter storm battered the region with heavy snow and high winds, causing an avalanche in Northern California on Tuesday, February 17th.
Search and rescue teams were dispatched around 11:30 a.m. local time to reports of an avalanche accident involving a group of skiers in the rugged and remote area of the Castle Peak area northwest of Lake Tahoe, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said. The group included 4 mountain guides and 12 skiers.
By 3:45 p.m. local time, the sheriff’s office announced that at least six skiers had survived the avalanche and remained at the scene awaiting rescue. The remaining 10 people remain missing, according to the sheriff’s office.
“Highly skilled rescue ski teams departed from both Boreal Mountain Ski Resort and Tahoe Donner’s Alder Creek Adventure Center and made their way to the six known survivors. They were instructed to evacuate to the best possible shelter under the circumstances,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Boreal Mountain Ski Resort and Alder Creek Adventure Center are both located near Castle Peak. Castle Peak is a popular backcountry ski area located over 9,000 feet in California’s Sierra Nevada near Donner Summit.
Search operations continued late into the night on Tuesday, February 17th. California Governor Gavin Newsom was briefed on the incident and state officials are “coordinating a full-scale search and rescue operation” with local emergency teams, his press office said in a post on X.
Here’s what you need to know about missing hikers and weather conditions in the Lake Tahoe region.
A ski group was returning from a three-day trip, according to a mountain guide company.
Blackbird Mountain Guides, a company based in Truckee, north of Lake Tahoe, confirmed in a statement that it was responding to a “serious remote incident” involving an avalanche near Frog Lake Hut in the Castle Peak area.
“A total of 12 customers and four guides have stayed at the Frog Lake cabin since February 15,” the company said. “The group was returning to the trailhead after a three-day trip when the incident occurred.”
The company said it is working with the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office and Nevada County Search and Rescue to assist in rescue efforts.
Blackbird Mountain Guides has offices in Truckee and Mount Shasta, California, and Bellingham, Washington. The company offers guided ski and mountaineering tours around the world, according to its website.
The secluded location of the Frog Lake cabin, known for its avalanche danger
Frog Lake Backcountry Hut is a secluded property located just north of Donner Pass. The Frog Lake area was closed to the public for nearly a century until it was acquired by the Truckee Donner Land Trust and its partners in 2020.
According to the Truckee Donner Land Trust, Frog Lake’s three cabins offer unusual accommodations for guests who want to experience the area’s rugged outdoor landscape. The cabin is especially difficult to access during the winter, requiring visitors to walk for miles on either skis, snowboards, or snowshoes.
In addition to good physical fitness, the Truckee Donner Land Trust notes on its website that visitors need avalanche education. The organization also stressed the need to be aware of potential avalanche areas due to the remote location.
All winter routes to the Frog Lake huts have “some level of avalanche risk,” the group said, adding that each party member should carry a beacon, probe and shovel when trekking there in the winter.
Officials warned of avalanche danger amid winter storm
A total of 46 emergency personnel are participating in the ongoing rescue effort, according to the sheriff’s office. Officials noted that weather conditions in the region “remain extremely dangerous.”
The Sierra Avalanche Center previously issued an avalanche warning from 5 a.m. local time on Tuesday, Feb. 17, to Wednesday, Feb. 18, according to the sheriff’s office.
“Significant avalanche danger exists in the backcountry. Large avalanches are expected to occur across backcountry terrain Tuesday, Tuesday night into at least early Wednesday morning,” the warning states. “High avalanche danger may continue throughout the day Wednesday.”
The avalanche occurred at an elevation of about 8,200 feet in the Castle Peak area, according to the Sierra Avalanche Center. The avalanche is rated a D2.5, indicating a “major” to “very major” slide that could bury or seriously injure people.
“High risk means traveling in or under avalanche terrain is not recommended,” the Sierra Avalanche Center said, noting that whiteout conditions and difficult navigation made backcountry travel difficult during the storm.
Castle Peak has experienced repeated avalanche activity this winter. Another slide in the same general area in early January killed a man on a snowmobile, highlighting the continuing dangers of unstable snowpack.
Major winter storm increases avalanche danger, leads to whiteout conditions
The avalanche occurred as the strongest storm of the season battered the Tahoe region with heavy snow and high winds.
The National Weather Service expects 12 to 20 inches of snow to fall around Lake Tahoe on Tuesday, Feb. 17, with total snow accumulations of 14 to 22 inches above 7,000 feet. Southwest winds of 20 to 30 mph were reported in exposed areas, with gusts up to 80 mph on the ridge.
Forecasters said the snow was expected to continue into the night and return later in the week, prolonging dangerous conditions in the mountains.
Despite the danger, ski resorts around Tahoe reported deep powder and large amounts of fresh snow, while many warned of opening delays, lift closures and avalanche mitigation work due to wind and visibility issues.
“If you can get up the mountain, there’s going to be a lot of powder, but getting up into the hills can take some patience,” said Mike Pearce, a spokesperson for Mount Rose Ski Tahoe, adding that the resort is operating in full winter storm mode.
Interstate 80 closed, chain restrictions spread across Sierra Nevada and western Nevada
Travel through the Sierra Nevada was severely impacted on Tuesday, February 17, when heavy snow closed major passageways.
Interstate 80 remains closed from Colfax to the Nevada state line, with no estimated reopening time announced. California Highway Patrol troopers warned that conditions at Donner Pass were dangerous and asked motorists to stay off the road unless absolutely necessary.
Other mountain routes also faced closures and strict chain restrictions, including the Mount Rose Highway, Route 50 through the Tahoe Basin, and several state highways in western Nevada. The chain requirement also applied to much of Reno and surrounding communities.
Officials urged travelers to check Caltrans and Nevada Department of Transportation road condition websites before attempting to cross the Sierra Pass.
Latest avalanche accident in the US
According to the National Avalanche Center, 25 to 30 people die in avalanches each winter in the United States. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center notes that the majority of incidents involve backcountry skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers.
As of Jan. 11, six people have been killed in avalanches nationwide during the 2025-2026 winter season, according to data from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. A total of 22 people died in avalanches during the 2024-2025 winter season.
Several cases made national headlines last year. In January, two men were killed in an avalanche while snowmobiling in the backcountry in central Washington state. In December 2025, a ski patroller was killed in an avalanche while performing avalanche mitigation at Mammoth Mountain Resort in central California.
In February 2025, two separate avalanches killed three skiers in Oregon and California. About a month later, another skier was found dead in an avalanche in Utah’s Uinta Mountains, and three heli-skiers and a teenager were killed in separate avalanches in Alaska.
(This article has been updated with new information.)
