Widow installing avalanche awareness signs in Palisades area Tuesday
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PALISADES — A young widow who lost her husband in an avalanche last year is spending Tuesday installing warning signs in the Palisades area.
Adam Andersen was snowmobiling with friends Jan. 10, 2018 when he became caught in an avalanche in the Mt. Jefferson area of Island Park. His body was recovered the next morning and his untimely death left three children without a father.
Adam’s wife, Summer, created the nonprofit Adam Andersen Avalanche Project and raised money to install avalanche warning signs in eastern Idaho. Last year she worked with the U.S. Forest Service to post the signs at five different trailheads in Island Park.
“We need some people to help us put them up this year (around Palisades) because the area is so big and there are so many signs,” Summer Andersen tells EastIdahoNews.com.
The signs warn visitors to “know the snow,” check the daily avalanche forecast and carry proper avalanche safety gear.
Three people were killed in Idaho avalanches in 2018 and one snowmobiler died in Jan. 2019 after being buried in an avalanche at Upper Palisades Lake, according to the National Avalanche Association.
Andersen has also partnered with Action Motor Sports for free avalanche awareness seminars. In October, a class was held with raffle proceeds going toward the Adam Anderson Avalanche Project. The project has purchased thousands of dollars worth of avalanche safety gear that it loans to the community at no cost. The gear was used roughly 100 times by snowmobilers last year, according to Action Motor Sports Controller Steve Dutcher.
If you’re interested in helping post the signs Tuesday, message the Adam Andersen Avalanche Project here.
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