Snowboarder Dies in Colorado Avalanche: Fourth Fatal Slide in the West This Week

SILVERTON, Colo.—On Thursday, a snowboarder tragically lost her life in an avalanche in the southwestern Colorado mountains, marking the fourth avalanche-related death in the western U.S. this week following a series of winter storms.

Sarah Steinwand, 41, from Crested Butte, Colorado, was engulfed by the avalanche’s debris while in the backcountry near Silverton. Fortunately, a man skiing alongside her managed to escape the snow slide, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Staff from a nearby backcountry hut witnessed the avalanche, promptly notified rescuers, and assisted the skier in retrieving Steinwand from the wreckage.

Earlier this week, avalanches claimed the lives of three people: one near Lake Tahoe in California and two backcountry skiers in Oregon’s Cascade Mountains.

Although the avalanche danger was elevated for many mountainous regions in Colorado earlier this week, conditions have since shown improvement in certain areas.