9 background skiers missing in California 

Authorities in the Lake Tahoe region of California report that nine backcountry skiers are missing after an avalanche.  The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office reported that six more people had been rescued after becoming stuck.

Officials said the avalanche occurred in the Castle Peak area near the town of Truckee at approximately 11:30 PST (19:30 GMT). The weather is still hazardous, and there is a significant likelihood of more avalanches. “Highly skilled rescue ski teams” have deployed from two nearby ski resorts, the sheriff said. The six known survivors have been “directed to shelter in place as best they can in the conditions,” the sheriff added.

Officials initially reported that a group of 16 people in total – four guides and 12 clients – were involved, though that number was later lowered to 15. “The six initially reported skiers who survived the avalanche have been successfully rescued this evening,” the sheriff’s office wrote on Facebook late on Tuesday night. Two of the six rescued skiers were taken to hospital, it said.

Experts from the Alder Creek Adventure Center and the neighboring Boreal Mountain Ski Resort are also making an effort to get to the location.  46 emergency responders joined the rescue attempts, according to a previous statement the sheriff’s office released.

The Sierra Avalanche Center wrote in a forecast: “Large avalanches are expected to occur [on] Tuesday, Tuesday night, and into at least early Wednesday morning across backcountry terrain.” The avalanche centre listed the danger rating as “high” – a four out of five on the rating scale.

“Travel in, near, or below avalanche terrain is not recommended today. A widespread natural avalanche cycle is expected over the next 24 hours,” the centre said. “Large avalanches may run through treed areas.” According to Capt. Russell Greene, a sheriff’s office spokesman, the search for the missing skiers would be a “slow, tedious process” due to the high risk of avalanches for rescuers, as reported by local news station .

He stated that those who were still alive were “doing the best they can to survive” by taking cover under tarpaulin sheets, while first responders, some of whom were on skis, were still attempting to reach the avalanche zone as of approximately 17:15 PST (01:15 GMT). He said it was not uncommon for ski tour companies to take paying customers out in such conditions, adding: “I don’t think it was a wise choice but we don’t know all the details yet.”

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office said in a post on X that state authorities were “co-ordinating an all-hands search-and-rescue effort” with local emergency teams.