APTOPIX California Avalanche
A motorist scrapes ice off his vehicle along interstate 80 during a snow storm Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, near Camp Spaulding in Placer County, Calif.
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The six women killed in an avalanche in California’s Sierra Nevada were among a group of eight close friends and experienced backcountry skiers on a trip together. That's according to a statement released by their families Thursday. Tuesday’s avalanche killed eight people. Six survived the disaster. Authorities say it will be at least another day before crews can attempt to recover the bodies and continue the search for a ninth person still missing and presumed dead.
Experts say a weekslong “snow drought” in Norther California's Sierra Nevada helped set the stage for Tuesday's deadly avalanche, after several feet of new snow fell on an earlier layer that had hardened. The new snow didn't bond to the earlier layer before the avalanche near Lake Tahoe killed at least eight backcountry skiers, said San Jose State University meteorology professor Craig Clements. Six skiers survived and rescuers were searching for another who was still missing. The group was on a three-day backcountry trek when they were trapped by the avalanche as a winter storm pummeled the West Coast.
