Backcountry users who recreate in the Park City area were reminded of the possible dangers on Friday when an avalanche occurred in the Dutch Draw area, outside of resort boundaries.
A 911 caller reported an avalanche with people possibly buried around 2 p.m., according to a report from the Summit County Sheriff’s Office. The call was then dropped and the person did not answer callbacks.
Park City Mountain put the 9990 Express lift on hold around 2:45 p.m. on Friday for “snow safety.” There was no information available about the size of the slide on the Utah Avalanche Center website.
Deputies responded to the Canyons Village side of Park City Mountain and met with the resort’s emergency response team, including ski patrol. Together, they set up an incident command.
Summit County Search and Rescue and a drone operator were also paged to respond, according to the report. A helicopter examined the slide area from above.
Witnesses were interviewed, and deputies determined no one was buried in the avalanche. There was no immediate threat to public safety.
The gate providing access to the backcountry from the top of the 9990 was closed permanently in 2021. The Dutch Draw area was the site of a fatal avalanche that January as well as one in December 2019.
Avalanche danger was considerable throughout most of Utah as of Monday. Forecasters with the Utah Avalanche Center expect danger to remain elevated as the backcountry adjusts to new snow and other conditions brought on by recent winter storms.