Five snowboarders were killed on Colorado’s Loveland Pass in an avalanche on Saturday while they were backcountry boarding.

A group of six snowboarders were backcountry boarding when they activated the avalanche. All six boarders were taking part in an event prompting backcountry safety and gear; this was called Rocky Mountain High Backcountry Gathering.

The sixth rider, Jerome Boulay, was able to dig himself out of the snow unharmed and called for help. If Boulay had not been able to call for help no one would have known that the group had been trapped in the avalanche until late that night.

The avalanche happened around two p.m. It took four hours to find the boarders. The avalanche buried one of the boarders under twelve feet of snow.

All six snowboarders had the appropriate equipment and had avalanche beacons. Beacons are transceivers that can help track someone if they are lost or were in an avalanche and buried. They send out a signal to indicate where the person is located.

Colorado’s Avalanche Information Center tried to find out why the snow gave out and what the conditions were like when the slide started. They stated that it was a dangerous area and that it could have been the worst avalanche in the last fifty years.

“It’s sad and horrifying that people can do something for their whole life and make one mistake that could end their life. I have been boarding for a couple years and hearing about this makes me want to learn more about how to avoided avalanches in my future,” senior Stephen Pagel said.

The deaths of these five men will affect the boarding and skiing community for years in the future. Respect will be shown to these men. They carry a strong message about how backcountry skiing is dangerous and that the appropriate equipment is necessary to be safe.