Photo: Utah Avalanche Center
An 11-year-old girl died in an avalanche earlier this month. The girl, later identified as Madelyn Eitas, was skiing in the backcountry near Utah’s Brighton Ski Resort when the incident took place. Now, the trio of skiers who found her have recounted their experience of attempting to save the girl.
On Thursday, February 19, high school students Harrison and Maggie Garner were skiing with their friend, Darius Christensen, in the backcountry near Brighton Ski Resort when they came across a patch of snow that appeared to have been hit by an avalanche, as they told KSL. They learned that Eitas had been buried in the snow, and promptly joined in with family and others attempting to find her.
“In a moment of dire need, everybody came together and was like, ‘We need to get to work and save this girl,’” said Christensen.
Authorities credited Madelyn’s brother with locating Eitas using an app on his phone. They didn’t specify which app he used. The group managed to dig her out and provide first aid. Eitas was then taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition, where she later died.
“I was just super sad, just thinking what I would be doing if it was my family member and just thinking it was super sad for that family,” added Garner.
The incident was one of two fatal avalanches over the course of 24 hours in the region. The day before, a man was killed in an avalanche while riding a snowmobile with his son in the backcountry near Midway.
