Girl dies after being caught in Utah avalanche

BRIGHTON, Utah (KSL) — A young girl died Thursday in an avalanche near Brighton Ski Resort,

The Salt Lake County sheriff’s search and rescue teams were called to assist Brighton ski patrol and Wasatch Backcountry Rescue with the avalanche just before 1 p.m. on Thursday.

“Rescuers located a juvenile female along the slide path and immediately provided first aid,” the sheriff’s office said. Neither her name nor her age have been released.

The avalanche occurred in an area that was “out of bounds” for recreational skiing, said Unified police detective Quin Wilkins.

The girl, who was said to be at the resort with her family, was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition but later died, according to Wilkins.

Rescuers later learned that the girl did not have an avalanche beacon, Wilkins noted. The device can help rescuers locate a buried victim through a transmitted signal.

“I want to thank all the responding agencies for their quick response to this avalanche. The conditions are ever changing with the unpredictable snowpack,” said Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera in a statement. “This incident is a reminder that avalanches can happen in an instant. I offer my heartfelt prayers to the victim and her family.”

The slide prompted a response from multiple agencies across Salt Lake County.

Wilkins said the area where the avalanche took place has been evaluated to make sure there is no continued risk, though it is still considered an “out of bounds” area.

Thursday’s incident was the second fatal avalanche in the past 24 hours.

On Wednesday, a man was killed in an avalanche while riding a snowmobile in the backcountry near Midway with his son, according to the Utah Avalanche Center.