""With the heaviest of hearts, we can confirm the loss of multiple lives from within the Sugar Bowl community,""
""Several members of the Sugar Bowl Academy community and others with strong connections to Sugar Bowl, Donner Summit, and the backcountry community died in an avalanche at Castle Peak on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.""
An avalanche the size of a football field struck a backcountry party of 15 skiers near Donner Pass at approximately 11:30 a.m. on February 17, 2026, amid heavy snow and winds. Six skiers survived and were evacuated by search and rescue teams. Eight bodies have been found and a ninth person is missing and presumed dead, per the Nevada County Sheriff's Department. The eight confirmed deaths make this the deadliest avalanche in California since modern record keeping began. Multiple victims had ties to Sugar Bowl Resort and its Sugar Bowl Academy. The trip was guided by Blackbird Mountain Guides.
Read at SFGATE
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]