{"id":101596,"date":"2018-01-30T10:42:48","date_gmt":"2018-01-30T17:42:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/report-avalanche-victim-drifted-into-gully-he-intended-to-avoid\/"},"modified":"2018-01-30T10:42:48","modified_gmt":"2018-01-30T17:42:48","slug":"report-avalanche-victim-drifted-into-gully-he-intended-to-avoid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/report-avalanche-victim-drifted-into-gully-he-intended-to-avoid\/","title":{"rendered":"Report: Avalanche victim drifted into gully he intended to avoid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=d66b5daf-ca1a-42ab-b3be-7cf14a859def&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=d66b5daf-ca1a-42ab-b3be-7cf14a859def&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=800 800w, https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=d66b5daf-ca1a-42ab-b3be-7cf14a859def&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=1200 1200w, https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=d66b5daf-ca1a-42ab-b3be-7cf14a859def&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=1800 1800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 2000px\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" alt=\"Abel Palmer of Durango died in an avalanche Jan. 21 on the south side of Red Mountain Pass. This Facebook photo posted in February 2015 shows him hiking with backcountry skies near the Continental Divide.\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Abel Palmer of Durango died in an avalanche Jan. 21 on the south side of Red Mountain Pass. This Facebook photo posted in February 2015 shows him hiking with backcountry skies near the Continental Divide.<\/span><span class=\"credit\">Courtesy of Facebook<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>It was only a minor mistake, but one with deadly consequences, that caused an avalanche between Silverton and Red Mountain last week, killing a 27-year-old Durango man, according to a final report on the accident.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s similar to getting lost in the big city,\u201d said Ethan Greene, director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. \u201cYou do your research, you get disoriented and you end up in the wrong neighborhood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt doesn\u2019t need to happen and it shouldn\u2019t happen,\u201d Greene said, \u201cbut sometimes it does.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Jan. 21, a human-triggered avalanche occurred in a steep gully in a popular backcountry skiing spot known as Sam\u2019s Trees, on the south side of Red Mountain Pass near mile marker 77 on U.S. Highway 550.<\/p>\n<p>The avalanche was recorded at 18 to 22 inches deep and 240 feet wide, and released the entire season\u2019s snow pack built up in the gully, the CAIC said.<\/p>\n<p>The avalanche resulted in the death of Abel Palmer.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"http:\/\/avalanche.state.co.us\/caic\/acc\/acc_report.php%3Faccfm%3Dinv%26acc_id%3D649\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">final report on the incident conducted by CAIC<\/a>, Palmer and his skiing partner had looked up the avalanche danger that day, and specifically decided to avoid the steep gully in question.<\/p>\n<p>But Palmer accidentally entered the gully, triggering the avalanche. Efforts to revive him, which included nearly three hours of CPR that lasted until after dark, were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<p><\/p><div class=\"naviga-social-embed\">&lt;![CDATA[<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/embed?mid=1kkp4LvzaBieaKOnjOP9HBlcJoIL3XZi3\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"><\/iframe>]]&gt;<\/div>\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a reminder for people to be careful,\u201d Greene said.<\/p>\n<p>Palmer and his partner, identified in the report as \u201cSkier 1,\u201d had met at Purgatory Resort around 10 a.m. On the way up to Red Mountain Pass, about an hour drive, the pair checked the CAIC website for avalanche danger, settling on Sam\u2019s Trees.<\/p>\n<p>The two started up the mountain around 11:45 a.m., agreeing to avoid steep slopes.<\/p>\n<p>According to the report, the mild and relatively dry winter these past few months had caused a weak layer of snow. A recent storm had dumped fresh snow on top of that weak layer, which Greene described as a \u201cbuilding on a weak foundation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As the pair skied down, Skier 1 triggered a small avalanche, without his knowledge. Palmer told Skier 1 of the slide, and the two met up to re-evaluate their plan.<\/p>\n<p>While doing so, the pair specifically identified avoiding the gully.<\/p>\n<p>But as they continued down the mountain, Palmer skied past Skier 1, accidentally drifting into the gully.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 continued downhill, past Palmer, and then decided to slow down and look for Palmer. In doing so, snow starting flowing around Skier 1\u2019s legs, pushing him 50 to 60 feet downhill.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1, however, was able to get out of this smaller slide. But before he could turn around and look for Palmer, he was hit with a second wave of an avalanche, which pushed him another 60 feet downhill.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 was taken down the mountain head first, struggling to keep his head above the debris. He was able to catch onto a spruce tree as the snow rushed past, taking his skis and leaving him buried waist deep.<\/p>\n<p>After the snow settled, Skier 1 called out for Palmer. Not hearing a response, he took out his phone to call 911 but had no service. The time, according to the report, was 1:20 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 dug himself out of the snow and fired three rounds from a .22 caliber pistol in the air hoping to attract the attention of other skiers nearby. He then pulled out his search beacon and switched it into search mode, but it couldn\u2019t find Palmer.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 guessed Palmer was uphill from him. He climbed 30 feet before receiving a signal from Palmer\u2019s beacon, then noticing a glove sticking out of the snow. With a shovel, Skier 1 began digging Palmer out.<\/p>\n<p>By 1:28 p.m., Skier 1 had uncovered Palmer\u2019s face and chest, which was buried about 3 feet under snow. Palmer was not breathing or responsive, and didn\u2019t have a pulse. After attempting CPR, Skier 1 decided he needed to find help.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDeciding to stop CPR to try and find help is a really difficult decision to have to make,\u201d Greene said. \u201cIt\u2019s a really tough call and everyone is going to have a different opinion, but it\u2019s hard to see how that would have changed the outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 traveled about 100 yards down the mountain before coming across a pair of skiers and a solo-tourer. They decided the two skiers would go with Skier 1, and the solo tourer would head to the highway and call 911.<\/p>\n<p>The solo tourer was able to make that call at 2:24 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>The three skiers went back to Palmer, moved him to a safer location and resumed CPR. After about 20 minutes, with no sight of search crews, one of the pair of skiers went to the highway to find help.<\/p>\n<p>Fearing that skier didn\u2019t make it, the other partner went downhill around 3:45 p.m. to make sure they were OK.<\/p>\n<p>Skier 1 continued CPR alone until Search and Rescue arrived at 4:40 p.m. Palmer was put in a sled and taken downhill, reaching an ambulance on the highway at 5:50 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>An autopsy to determine Palmer\u2019s official cause of death had not been completed. Efforts to reach San Juan County Coroner Keri Metzler on Monday were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<p>The report concludes that both skiers had read about the avalanche danger and developed a plan to avoid the area they ended up in. Skier 1, after reviewing photos of where the avalanche occurred, was surprised how far off track they had become.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhatever the reason, it is not uncommon experience for backcountry travelers,\u201d the report says.<\/p>\n<p>This accident marked the first avalanche death in Colorado of the 2017-18 season.<\/p>\n<p>According to friends, Palmer attended Telluride High School, studied at Fort Lewis College and worked at Durango Sports Club.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was always one of those happy-go-lucky guys that was enjoying life and had a smile on his face,\u201d Will Thomas, owner of Durango Sports Club, said in an earlier interview. \u201cAbel was one of the biggest outdoorsmen I\u2019ve ever known.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/supportabelsfamily\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">GoFundMe campaign was started to help Palmer\u2019s family<\/a> with funeral costs.<\/p>\n<p><em class=\"mwc_shirttail\"><a href=\"mailto:jromeo@durangoherald.com\">jromeo@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Palmer, 27, was buried in snow Jan. 21 near Red Mountain Pass<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":101597,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5736,5735],"tags":[377,13,87],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-101596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news","category-news","tag-avalanche-landslide","tag-frontpage-lead","tag-red-mountain-pass"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101596","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101596"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101596\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101596"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101596"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=101596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}