NEVADA COUNTY, Calif. — A snowboarder was rescued by fellow riders after accidentally triggering an avalanche on Castle Peak in Nevada County on Monday.
According to a report by the U.S. Forest Service, nine snowboarders were skiing the north side of Castle Peak when the final rider triggered the avalanche on their decent. That snowboarder was swept up in the avalanche and carried approximately 200 feet down the mountain before being buried facedown in about two feet of snow, according to the Forest Service report.
The buried snowboarder’s fellow riders responded quickly and managed to pull their friend out in about four minutes. The buried rider was unconscious when their friends got to them, but soon woke up and became oriented, the report stated. The report did not indicate if the snowboarder suffered any injuries.
According to the Forest Service, the slope on which the snowboarders were skiing was a little more than 600 feet long and “consisted of lower angle terrain on the upper slope descending into a steep convex rollover with rocky terrain with few trees below.”
The avalanche began in the middle of the slope and ran about 300 feet long and about 200 feet wide, officials said. There were no other signs of instability observed in the immediate area.
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