Avalanche in Alaska, December 23, 2001

Russel Foster, Anchorage, his girlfriend and fiveother snowmachiners were with a group riding in the ChugachNational Forest off Palmer Creek Road near the old Swetmann MineSunday.Sometime after 1 p.m., Foster, 35, headed up a slope abovethe rest of the riders, according to State trooper reports. Afriend, Bobby Frankson, was below him when the snowpack on theside of the mountain let loose.The avalanche buried Foster. Frankson went for help.Snowmachiners found foster through a signal emitted by hisavalanche beacon. The searchers used probe poles to identify hisprecise location, and dug Foster out from about 3.5 to 4 feet ofhard packed snow. At least 30 minutes had elapsed since theavalanche.Two hours of CPR failed to revive Foster, who became thethird avalanche fatality in Alaska this winter.Conditions were prime for avalanches for severalweeks. This mix of extreme cold, punctuated by several 'warm'storms, has made the snowpack especially unstable, according toavalanche experts. On the bottom is a layer of very weak sugarysnow (faceted snow) that formed during the cold periods. Abovethat is heavier, denser snow that fell during the warmer periods,and wind packed snow. In between are thin layers of surfacehoarfrost and ice. Forecasts adequately reflected weather thatdeveloped across the area. A message from a private avalanchegroup regarding avalanche classes at the beginning of January wasbroadcast on "Alaska Weather", NWS produced television show thatis broadcast Statewide on public t.v.