The grandson of a Vail ski resort founder was killed Tuesday in an avalanche that also left three others temporarily trapped.
Anthony Seibert, 24, was caught in an avalanche in the East Vail Chutes, about 90 miles west of Denver, in backcountry outside the boundaries of the Vail Mountain resort area his grandfather, Peter Seibert, co-founded.
Three others were trapped in the snow but were rescued without serious injury, said Vail Valley Medical Center spokeswoman Lindsay Hogan.
"This was most likely triggered by the people who got caught in it," said Ethan Greene, of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, who said Vail rates a 3 on a scale of 1 to 5 used to determine the danger of avalanches.
"Today was apparently a beautiful day up in Vail and therefore would be an appealing day to be out in the backcountry," Greene said.
The East Vail Chutes are described in the Vail master development plan as an "extremely steep, avalanche-prone bowl."
A spokeswoman for the Eagle County Sheriff's Office said two people had been skiing and two others snowboarding, but did not determine which Seibert had been doing.
"This is a shocking and terrible tragedy," said Vail COO Chris Jarnot said. "This is an incomprehensible loss, and we will support the Seibert family and our community through this difficult time."
[CNN]
