Castle Peak area circled in red, northwest of Lake Tahoe. Photo: Google Maps screenshot
California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) handed down fines totaling $151,300 to Blackbird Mountain Guides (BMG) for its part in the deadly Castle Peak avalanche that killed nine people on February 17, 2026.The sum derived from seven different fines following an investigation by the state department. Two of which were related to the avalanche itself, with others stemming from general workplace violations, as deemed by workplace safety officials.
The most severe fine made up more than half of the final tally — $81,000 for “failing to correct the imminent hazard posed by traveling in avalanche terrain when the avalanche danger was rated high.” The other fine specific to the avalanche levied another $16,200 for “failing to adequately identify and assess avalanche hazards.”
Those fines came shortly after the backcountry guide company released the findings of a report on the incident on August 13. The report outlined that the group had attempted to reach terrain farther from the avalanche runout zone, but were stymied by an uncrossable creek. There was an alternate route available, but it was avoided as it went through private property with owners that have “aggressively pursued trespassers in past years.”
In response to the fines from Cal/OSHA, BMG said, “The citations do not reflect the reality of our profession or the safety program we have built. We believe Blackbird operated in full compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements and consistent with the established safety frameworks of the broader professional mountain guiding industry.”
Meanwhile, The Sacramento Bee reports that a former Blackbird guide who spoke to Cal/OSHA, presumably as part of their investigation, and disagreed with the agency’s decisions. The unnamed source said he’d spoken with agency officials who lacked any expertise in avalanche safety, and “seemed more interested in punishing Blackbird than learning what had gone wrong in a highly unique work environment,” according to the Bee. The guide also reportedly tried to contact agency officials after he was interviewed, hoping to offer more information, but they never called him back.
A criminal investigation is also underway by the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, but no charges have been announced as the case file was only recently delivered to the Nevada County district attorney.
“The community lost friends, colleagues, and family and they are missed every single day. We are deeply grateful to the emergency responders and community members who responded with extraordinary courage and compassion in the aftermath,” Blackbird Mountain Guides said in an August 21 statement.“Mountain guiding takes place in dynamic wilderness environments where conditions change minute to minute — it’s not a controlled setting such as construction sites. We welcome the opportunity to work with Cal/OSHA to contextualize the unique realities of operating in backcountry environments.”
