Washington Authorities Identified 3 Mountain Climbers Killed in Avalanche

Authorities on Wednesday publicly identified the three mountain climbers who died in a Washington avalanche that highlighted the extreme danger of alpine climbing in the middle of winter.

According to the Chelan County Sheriff's Office, Seong Cho, 54, Jeannie Lee, 60, and Yun Park, 66, all died following the avalanche on Colchuck Peak near Leavenworth on Sunday. They were reportedly part of a Korean climbing club in New York.

According to Seattle Times, their bodies are still at the scene. The sheriff's office said avalanche experts visited the area on Wednesday to evaluate the threat. A sheriff's sergeant previously said authorities must wait until the area is deemed safe and the weather improves before recovering the bodies.

The three mountain climbers were part of a party of six making their way up a steep gully called a couloir when the avalanche occurred. Four climbers reportedly slid about 500 feet, and one of them survived.

The sheriff's office said the group planned to summit the 8,705-foot Colchuck Peak when one of them unintentionally triggered an avalanche. It was reportedly the deadliest Washington avalanche since 2014.

Mountain Climbers Are Not Aware of the Washington Avalanche Forecast

According to Rich Magnussen, the emergency management program specialist for the Chelan County Sheriff's Office, who spoke to the three survivors on Tuesday, the group was unaware of the avalanche forecast for Sunday morning and had not trained to face one while on the mountain.

The New York Times reported they dealt with heavy snowfall and powerful winds as they tried to reach the peak.

"It's real extreme conditions up there," Magnussen said. "So when you get snow down here in the valley, you can times it by ten up there."

Mountain Climbers Lack Equipment

According to KOMO News, the Chelan County Sheriff's Office said none of the six mountain climbers had a beacon, an essential piece of equipment that constantly transmits the wearer's location.

Aside from a beacon, Sam McCann of Ascent Outdoors in Ballard recommends always carrying an avalanche shovel and a probe when climbing mountains.

"You should always have this on you," said McCann. "You're turning it on from the moment you step off the trailhead to the moment you're getting back. It's constantly transmitting a signal."

Some systems can communicate for weeks without recharging, according to McCann, saying that some shops even provide rentals of the equipment, despite their high price.

She also recommended carrying GPS satellite communications equipment for making manual calls to get help in an emergency. McCann added that Washington state's snowpack may be different from other places.

"There's a lot of snow that's in our mountains, especially in the winter, and that snowpack is constantly evolving," said McCann.

Moreover, she noted that checking the avalanche forecast is important, but circumstances can change quickly, so mountain climbers should be prepared for everything.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Bert Hoover

WATCH: Colchuck Peak Avalanche Victims Identified; Recovery Efforts Will Depend on Conditions - From KING 5 Seattle