Search for skier in Northern California continues amid snow, wind and subfreezing temperatures

Christian Martinez
·2 min read
In this photo provided by the Northstar Ski Resort, fresh snow surrounds a ski lift in Truckee, Calif., on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021. A major winter storm hitting Northern California is expected to intensify and bring travel headaches and a threat of localized flooding after an abnormally warm fall in the U.S. West. Light rain and snow that started falling over the weekend was heavier early Monday. The state's highest peaks could get as much as eight feet of snow while lower elevations across California are in for a drenching of rain. (Shannon Buhler/Northstar Ski Resort via AP)
Fresh snow surrounds a ski lift in Truckee, Calif. (Shannon Buhler / Associated Press)

The search for a skier who went missing Christmas Day at a Northern California ski resort continued Monday as snow and wind battered the area.

Rory Angelotta, 43, after failing to turn up for Christmas dinner, was reported missing just before 10 p.m. Saturday at Northstar California Resort in Truckee, the Placer County Sheriff's Office said in a statement posted to Facebook.

The sheriff's office began searching Saturday night alongside Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue, Nevada County Search and Rescue and the Northstar ski patrol. The searchers faced whiteout conditions, low temperatures and avalanche danger.

The search was called off Sunday evening but restarted about 8 a.m. Monday, although conditions continued to make search efforts dangerous, said Angela Musallam, public information officer for the sheriff's office.

"It's still bad," she said. Searchers are "combing through 6 feet of snow and it's extremely cold. Visibility is low."

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for the region until 1 a.m. Tuesday, with heavy snow and winds between 10 mph and 20 mph expected. Temperatures will remain below freezing until Thursday.

Musallam said the conditions, including downed trees and power lines, were preventing other search and rescue personnel from reaching the search area.

Caltrans has closed Interstate 80 from the Nevada state line to Applegate, southwest of Truckee.

The sheriff's office said Angelotta moved to Truckee from Colorado in October and was working at a ski shop at the Northstar resort.

Angelotta made a phone call at 11:25 a.m. Saturday and scanned his ski pass about 11:30 a.m., authorities said. There was no further activity on his phone or ski pass, officials said, and Angelotta's vehicle was found in the Northstar parking lot.

"We are incredibly saddened by the disappearance of a member of our Tahoe community, and our hearts are with his family and friends," Vail Resorts, Northstar's parent company, said Monday in an emailed statement.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.