3 reported dead in Stevens Pass avalanche
WINTER SPORTS -- Three people have died in an avalanche near Stevens Pass ski area, authorities say. Others who had been reported missing were accounted for today, the Seattle PI Online reports.
Sgt. Cindi West of the King County Sheriff's Office said the slide occurred in an out-of-bounds area near the popular resort in the Cascade Mountains. About 14 inches of new powder greeted skiers in the area this morning.
The three were skiing in a group of 13 friends that included both local and visiting skiers, according to ESPN Freeskiing editor Megan Michelson, who was among the skiers in the group.
The Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center had issued a warning for high avalanche danger for areas above 5,000 feet.
Across the West, there had been 13 avalanche deaths this season as of Feb. 16, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, which tracks avalanche deaths in the U.S.
