Avalanche at Alyeska Resort prompts Closure of Tram and two lifts

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

A small avalanche broke loose in the early morning hours from Alyeska's headwall prompting the ski resort to close two ski lifts and its tram on the last day of the company's spring Slush Cup carnival.

"Just in the manner of safety," said Duane Stutzman, mountain manager for the Resort. "There were no injuries, no damage, nothing like that. Just a pure safety and cautionary move on our part to enhance the safety of our guests and our resort employees."

The slide, which occurred at 2 a.m., will not impact Sunday's Slush Cup activities and the Resort will still have its "Passholder's Day" Monday, albeit with only Chairs Three and Seven open, Stutzman said.

Avalanche area at Alyeska Resort. No injuries or damage was reported by the resort. (Photo Credit: Benjamin Fletcher)

He said closing the lifts and the tram was a collaborative decision of the Resort's snow safety team and its mountain operations department.

"It's not how we wanted to end the season," he said. "We debated whether to not continue those two events [Passholder's Day and an employee party] and thought we should just go ahead and continue it just on a limited basis."

The slide is the second on the mountain in a year. An avalanche May 11 swept down the mountain from its north face to just behind Alyeska's hotel, displacing pond water from two kettles above.

In its final forecast for the season, the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Centerhas rated avalanche potential as "considerable" for the area.

"This is a spring wet slide, mother nature-triggered," Stutzman said.