Doctor dies in first fatal avalanche of Colorado snow season, sheriff says
A doctor was killed while backcountry snowboarding in the first fatal avalanche of Colorado’s snow season, officials said.
Friends of 67-year-old Dr. Peter Harrelson reported him overdue from his snowboarding trip in the Waterfall Creek area of Ophir just outside Telluride on Monday, Jan. 22, the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook.
His friends followed his tracks in the snowy terrain, but their search turned up empty, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.
San Miguel Search and Rescue launched an overnight rescue mission and searched from the air the next morning, officials said. Rescuers found his body shortly after 10 a.m.
He appeared to have died from traumatic injuries from the avalanche, rescuers said.
Both the sheriff’s office and people on Facebook extended condolences to Harrelson’s family and friends. Several of his friends and patients shared their sadness in comments.
“Peter was a wonderful man!” someone wrote. “Long time funky local, who went out of his way to help others. He will be truly missed in this community.”
Someone else shared that he was “such a good human.”
“Just horrible news,” someone wrote on Search and Rescue’s Facebook post. “RIP Doc, you were an inspiration.”
What to know about avalanches
Avalanches happen quickly and catch people by surprise. They can move between 60 and 80 mph and typically happen on slopes of 30-45 degrees, according to experts.
Skiers, snowmobilers and hikers can set off an avalanche when a layer of snow collapses and starts to slide down the slope.
In the U.S., avalanches are most common from December to April, but they can happen at any time if the conditions are right, National Geographic reported.
At least 4 people in the U.S. have died in avalanches this season as of Jan. 23, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Eleven people were killed by avalanches in Colorado’s 2022-2023 avalanche season.
People heading into snow should always check the local avalanche forecast at Avalanche.org, officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, and have an avalanche beacon, probe and shovel ready.
“Emergency services are usually too far away from the scene of an avalanche, and time is important,” Simon Trautman, a national avalanche specialist, said. “A person trapped under the snow may not have more than 20 or 30 minutes. So, in a backcountry scenario, you are your own rescue party.”
If an avalanche breaks out, it’s best to move diagonal to the avalanche to an edge, Trautman said.
“Try to orient your feet downhill so that your lower body, not your head, takes most of the impact,” officials said. “You may also get into a tight ball as another way to protect your head.”
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