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Show No. 62- 5 DOTSERO. COLORADO 4 March 1962 WEATHER FACTORS No records of the storm are available. On the day of the accident, the weather was clear, about 25°, with a wind of 5- 10 m. p. h. from the west. It is known that a previous storm was accompanied by moderate to high winds. SUMMARY OF ACCIDENT Nine men, a sno- cat and trailer, 24" of snowfall from a recent storm with winds, and a steep wide- open slope found themselves together on a clear mid- winter day. Eight of the men were State Game and Fish employees and the ninth a Forest Service man. Purpose of the trip was to do fisheries research on lakes and streams in the Heart Lake area. The men had expressed concern about possible avalanche danger farther up the road, but at this location were worried about the trailer or cat tipping over on the steep slope. When the cat was about 30 feet into an opening, the avalanche released. The three men riding on the trailer were knocked off and remember being worried that the trailer would tip over on top of them. The others, in the sno- cat, found themselves buried except for the back door. Neither the trailer nor the cat turned over, but were pushed off the road and down the hill. The three men from the trailer climbed back up to the cat where the six men were just emerging. None were injured. The avalanche was about 100 yards wide and 500 yards long. The accident occurred at 1345 hours, and it took the nine men until 1715 hours to free the cat and trailer so they could return to their cars. AVALANCHE DATA The slide was a hard slab, about 100 yards wide, and ran approximately 500 yards. The slab was about 24 inches thick, and slid on an " old crusted base." The slope faced southeast, and only low shrubs were visible on the path. Elevation was estimated at 9,000 feet. COMMENTS It appears that the sno- cat undercut the slab. If this had occurred in the middle of the slide instead of at the edge, the greater volume of snow could have buried the cat completely and probably buried some of the men who were riding on the trailer. Training is needed in avalanche hazard recognition and rescue techniques among those who work in steep snow terrain during the winter. 78 |