The Russian group of skiers, caught in an avalanche including the one who lost her life on February 22, decided to ski in the avalanche-prone zone and triggered the avalanche with their body load in the non-ski zone in north Kashmir’s Gulmarg, according to the investigations carried out by the Gulmarg Avalanche Centre (GAC).
Speaking to The Hindu, Brian Newman, an American avalanche forecaster investigating Thursday’s incident, said the group of eight skiers, including a local guide, decided to ski down from the back country side, which is a non-ski zone where avalanche mitigation is not carried out. The investigation suggested that the group did not follow safety guidelines to ski in risk-prone areas and went ahead with “in spite of very poor visibility and advisory”.
“On Thursday, there were eight individuals on the slope, all at the same time. They exerted force enough to trigger an avalanche. This clearly was dangerous thing to do and asking for trouble,” Mr. Newman said.
