Avalanche — Southwestern San Juan Mountains, Colorado

2023-03-16 · Southwestern San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Event narrative

A father and two children were moving between a building and vehicle when they were caught in a roof avalanche. The force of the avalanche threw one child towards the building, where their airway was covered in debris but part of their head was visible (partially buried-critical). The other two were completely buried about 10 feet away, in close proximity to each other, and under two to three feet of avalanche debris. Bystanders and emergency services excavated the three. All three were taken to hospital care. One of the children later died from injuries sustained in the avalanche.

Wider weather episode

A series of winter systems associated with an atmospheric river brought an abundance of heavy, wet snow to southwest Colorado. This, paired with periods of warmer temperatures in between the events, resulted in an unstable snowpack.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1079654. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.