Ski Guide Company Under Investigation In Deadly CA Avalanche As Recovery Effort Faces Treacherous Conditions

While treacherous conditions keep Tahoe rescue teams from recovering the bodies of all nine people killed in Tuesday's backcountry avalanche, state officials are investigating the ski tour company involved for possible criminal negligence, authorities announced Friday.

Four days after California's deadliest avalanche, mourning families are still waiting for the bodies of their loved ones to be recovered. So far, six of the victims have been identified — the majority mothers with young children and high-powered careers. The deadliest avalanche in modern history — the tragedy has left several Bay Area communities in mourning. Even Gov. Gavin Newsom's family had ties to the victims, he said Thursday.

Newsom said some of his wife's “old family friends” were on the trip. The Newsoms have a home in Marin County, where some of the people on the trip lived. His office did not immediately provide more details.

“These were some experienced guides that were out there, and that’s what’s even more concerning and disturbing,” he said at a news conference Thursday.

State officials are investigating whether the expedition company Blackbird Mountain Guides was criminally negligent in allowing its guides to lead a three-day trek into the Sierra Nevada backcountry despite avalanche warnings and blizzard conditions, The San Francisco Chronicle first reported.

The Nevada County Sheriff's Office opened an investigation into criminal negligence, and Cal/OSHA is conducting a separate investigation into Blackbird Mountain Guides, according to The Chronicle.

According to Dallas Glass, an avalanche forecaster with the Northwest Avalanche Center, heavy snowfall and strong winds created dangerous avalanche conditions. "In some locations, the new snow buried a particularly weak layer of sugary grains known as facets. All of these factors led to the Sierra Avalanche Center issuing High avalanche danger (4 of 5), and an Avalanche Warning. Large and very large human-triggered and natural avalanches were expected," Glass told Patch.

The skiers and guides all understood the dangers of trekking through California’s Sierra Nevada remote wilderness, according to AP News, as they had close ties to Lake Tahoe's alpine community.

Avalanche safety experts say it is not uncommon for backcountry skiers to go out when there is an avalanche watch or even a warning.

A spokesperson for Blackbird Mountain Guides said the guides who were on the trek were trained or certified in backcountry skiing and were instructors with the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education. While in the field, guides “are in communication with senior guides at our base, to discuss conditions and routing based upon conditions,” founder Zeb Blais said in a statement.

In the meantime, first responders hoped to resume recovery efforts for the victims' bodies on Friday after heavy snowstorm conditions in the Central Sierra Nevada region forced them to halt the search on Thursday.

Authorities have closed off access to all National Forest lands and trails in the Castle Peak area while recovery efforts are underway. Crews are trying to use snow machines, aircraft, heavy equipment and possibly explosives to mitigate any dangers first responders might face while recovering the bodies, according to the U.S. Forest Service-Tahoe National Forest.

The closure is expected to last through March 15, but may be rescinded early if authorities deem the area safe for the public before then, according to U.S. Forest Service officials.

"It is our top priority to ensure the safety of first responders during this recovery mission and aid in the return of each victim to their families," Tahoe National Forest Supervisor Chris Feutrier said. “Our deepest condolences to the families that have lost their loved ones from this tragic incident."

College Friends On A Backcountry Ski Adventure

In total, 15 people, mostly a close-knit group of friends and four guides from Blackbird Mountain Guides, took part in the trip.

At least one of the victims was married to a rescue team member, and all were known for their love of backcountry wilderness. Some members of the group had ties to the elite Sugar Bowl Academy, a private boarding and day school for competitive skiers and snowboarders whose former students include multiple Olympians.

"They were all mothers, wives and friends, all of whom connected through the love of the outdoors," according to a spokesperson for the families, who said the women were all from the Bay Area, Idaho and the Truckee-Tahoe region. "They were passionate, skilled skiers who cherished time together in the mountains."

"We are heartbroken and are doing our best to care for one another and our families in the way we know these women would have wanted," their families said. "We are asking for privacy and space as our families grieve this sudden and profound loss."

Three ski guides who were also killed in the avalanche have yet to be identified.

Sisters Caroline Sekar and Liz Clabaugh died together on the mountain. The New York Times spoke with Clabaugh's brother, who called the incident a "nightmare."

Early reports suggest the sisters were traveling with college friends on the three-day backcountry trek through the mountains.

Sekar is a San Francisco resident and, according to her LinkedIn, a Stanford alum, while Clabaugh, 52, worked for St. Luke’s Health System in Boise, Idaho.

Kate Vitt, a Marin County mother who worked at Sirius XM and Pandora. The Kentfield School District sent an email to families on Wednesday saying that her two sons “are safe and are with their father, Geoff, as they navigate this profound loss,” according to The New York Times.

The community of Mill Valley is in mourning as news spread Thursday of the avalanche death of a mother of two young children. That mother turned out to be Vitt.

“Our heart in Mill Valley goes out to the families that have been impacted,” Mill Valley Mayor Max Perrey told The New York Times. “It’s a huge tragedy and a huge loss.”

The Kentfield School District in Marin County confirmed in an email that one of its community members, a mother of two young students, died in the avalanche, according to SFGate. The email, which identified the mother and her children, described the family as "a cherished part of our community" and stated that the two boys are with their father as they "navigate this profound loss."

Some members of the group had ties to the elite Sugar Bowl Academy, a private boarding and day school for competitive skiers and snowboarders whose former students include multiple Olympians.

Kate Morse, a Tiburon resident and Vice President of a biotechnology company; Danielle Keatley, a Marin County resident who worked for a biopharmaceutical company and Carrie Atkin, a Truckee-Tahoe area resident, former corporate executive turned career coach and ex-Division I Track & Field athlete, were also identified by their families.

The families asked for privacy while they grieve.

Treacherous Conditions Hamper Recovery Efforts

Authorities on Thursday suspended the recovery mission for a group of nine skiers as a powerful winter storm continued to cause blinding snowy conditions throughout the Central Sierra Nevada's remote wilderness.

The crews risked being buried by additional avalanches.

An avalanche warning is still in effect in the region through Friday. Search and rescue crews are now looking to the weekend to help recover the bodies of the victims, according to the Nevada County Sheriff's Office.

Only after the search resumes, according to deputies, will authorities be able to publicly identify the victims.

"We are on the mountain, but they are not going to be able to safely reach them," Ashley Quadros, a spokesperson for the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, said Thursday. "The weather conditions are really dangerous."

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Fateful Decisions

Some of the victims were connected to an academy for competitive skiers, and all the guides were certified or trained in backcountry skiing through the American Mountain Guides Association.

It's unclear why the group went out despite the avalanche warning. But what the guides and Blackbird Mountain Guides knew about the warnings and risks from a powerful winter storm that blasted the mountains during the trip is now part of the ongoing investigation.

Blackbird Mountain Guide officials called the incident an "enormous tragedy," but did not comment on the decision to go on with the excursion.

The company said in a statement online that they are still learning more about the moments leading up to the avalanche, and that it was too soon to conclude what happened.

"We ask that people following this tragedy refrain from speculating," the ski company said. "We don’t have all the answers yet, and it may be some time before we do. In the meantime, please keep those impacted in your hearts."

Families of the victims echoed that the trip was well-organized in advance. and that everyone traveling across the backcountry was fully trained and equipped with avalanche safety equipment.

"They were experienced backcountry skiers who deeply respected the mountains," the families said. The families said their focus has now shifted to supporting their children and "honoring the lives of these extraordinary women."

The 15 skiers, most of them women, began their multi-day trip on Sunday just as warnings about the storm were intensifying. They spent the weekend staying along Frog Lake in high country huts accessible only by challenging trails.

It was the last day of their trip on Tuesday, and they were in the Tahoe National Forest area near Truckee, when the avalanche hit. Authorities said the skiers had little time to react.

“Someone saw the avalanche, yelled ‘Avalanche!’ and it overtook them rather quickly,” said Capt. Russell “Rusty” Greene, of the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, said Wednesday.

Six survivors — four men and two women — searched for their missing, but were only able to find three who were already dead during the six hours they waited to be rescued, authorities said. Search and rescue crews later found the remaining dead, while one skier, who is presumed dead, has yet to be found.

The skiers all had beacons that could send signals to rescuers, and at least one guide could send text messages.

Of the six survivors, one was a ski guide at Blackbird Mountains Guides, and five were clients. Two survivors suffered injuries that left them unable to walk. One has since been released while the other remains hospitalized. Their injuries are not considered life-threatening, according to authorities.

The avalanche is the deadliest in the U.S. since 1981, when 11 climbers were killed on Mount Rainier in Washington state.

AP News and Patch Editor Michael Wittner contributed to this report.