Witnesses to a fatal avalanche at Snowmass ski area are disputing a contention by resort officials that the site was clearly marked as closed.
Pro skier Nicholas Blake Davidson, 25, was killed Thursday in the rare in-bounds avalanche that occurred in the extreme-terrain cliff area of the Hanging Valley Wall.
Ski-area officials say that he ignored a closure sign when he entered the area.
“It is indisputable that the accident occurred in a closed area within the ski-area boundary,” according to a statement the company released Friday.
Resort officials said Davidson went past a “closed” sign at the entrance to an area known as Rayburn’s Chute. “Davidson launched from a knoll in the closed area landing below the cliffs also in a closed area,” the statement said.
Resort officials said he set off an avalanche that ran down the chute, into an open area where other tracks could be seen.
But some locals say there was little to indicate that the popular powder stash was off-limits.
“I didn’t see any signs, any ropes, and so I was under the impression the whole time that we were in an in-bounds area,” said snowboarder Stefanie Statires, who helped search for Davidson in the avalanche debris.
She said it wasn’t a case of skiers bypassing boundary markers by sneaking through the trees as a way to claim ignorance of a closure.
“The first time I heard it was out of bounds was when (resort officials) said it was,” she continued. “To be honest, if I had known it was out of bounds or if I had seen any signs or ropes, I would have said: ‘Look guys, I don’t want to go there.”‘
She suggested that the resort isn’t acknowledging a serious lapse in safety.
“They’re afraid of a lawsuit,” said Statires, 23.
Others on the scene said that Davidson entered well to the flank of the single “closed” sign that was posted for the area and contended that ski-area crews should have roped off the terrain to have eliminated any doubt.
“It’s really a borderline closed area, and if they really didn’t want anyone there, they could have roped it,” said snowboarder Mike Hogan, who was just moments behind Davidson.
Locals often head to the extreme-terrain area, known for its cliffs and steep slopes, after big storms, and they don’t traditionally carry avalanche gear, Hogan said.
“In-bounds, we put our trust in the (ski) patrol, put our trust in the mountain,” he said.
Davidson apparently set off the avalanche when he landed a jump off a 30-foot cliff, causing the soft slab of snow to fracture and run about 150 feet, said Ann Mellick, a forecaster with the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.
He was buried about a foot beneath the surface, but because he wasn’t wearing an avalanche beacon and nearby skiers didn’t have shovels, the search was particularly arduous.
Eventually Davidson was found, but by the time his friends could dig him out, they could not resuscitate him.
Staff writer Steve Lipsher can be reached at 970-513-9495 or slipsher@denverpost.com.
