Three people were killed and one person suffered injuries on Feb. 19 after an avalanche struck Washington state’s Cascade Mountains while they were attempting to reach a peak, officials have said.
According to a preliminary report from the Northwest Avalanche Center, a group of six climbers were ascending the Northeast Couloir of Colchuck Peak, an 8,705-foot (2,653 meters) mountain summit located about 70 miles (113 kilometers) east of Seattle in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, on Sunday when the lead climber triggered an avalanche at approximately 1:15 p.m.
The slab avalanche—which occurs when a large, cohesive area of snow slides downwards—caught and carried four members of the team approximately 500 feet to the base of the climb, the Center said….