Teen buried by avalanche dies on snowmobile trip with his father, Utah rescuers say

An 18-year-old from Utah on a snowmobile outing with his father died Saturday after being buried in an avalanche, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.

The teen’s father called 911 at 1:45 p.m. following the avalanche, which took place after the two had become separated in Farmington Canyon, The Deseret News reported.

The 18-year-old had a beacon and inflatable backpack in case of avalanche, said Liz Sollis of the Davis County Sheriff’s Office, according to The Standard-Examiner.

“What I understand is the backpack didn’t deploy – it didn’t do what it was supposed to do,” Sollis said, the publication reported. “So he had the necessary equipment, but unfortunately, it didn’t work in his favor.”

Rescuers responded swiftly by helicopter and worked with bystanders to dig the teen out within 30 minutes of the avalanche, but he was later pronounced dead at a hospital, KSL reported.

“They were in a very remote location and at this time of year it’s only accessible by snowmobile, maybe by foot,” said sheriff’s Sgt. Nathan Dabb, according to the station. “We were really lucky that AirMed was just a few minutes away.”

Sheriff’s officials did not release the teen’s name, The Deseret News reported.

The Utah Avalanche Center had warned of back-country dangers following a storm early Friday, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

“Visitors to the Utah back-country this weekend will find great powder snow and nice weather but don’t let your guard down because dangerous avalanche conditions exist on wind-drifted upper elevation slopes,” a statement from the center read, according to the publication.

This story was originally published January 19, 2020 at 7:32 AM with the headline "Teen buried by avalanche dies on snowmobile trip with his father, Utah rescuers say."