Snowmobiler plunges 900 feet after ice shelf breaks on California cliff, rescuers say

Two snowmobilers watched in horror Saturday as their companion plunged 900 feet to his death from an icy cliff near Donner Lake in California, authorities say.

The man had unknowingly walked onto a cornice of ice and snow overhanging Frog Lake Cliffs after snowmobiling to the top with friends, the Sierra Avalanche Center reported.

A 40-foot section of the cornice — an overhanging edge of snow — gave way underneath him, triggering a 100-foot-wide avalanche that swept the fallen man over cliffs and through rocky chutes, the center said. His body was found 900 feet below the cliff.

An onlooker at the bottom of the cliff spotted the badly injured man on top of the snowy debris and tried to administer CPR, but he did not survive, the center reported.

Nevada County Sheriff’s Search & Rescue, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and Placer County Nordic Rescue responded to the incident, the Nevada County Sheriff’s office reported.

A U.S. Navy helicopter based in Fallon, Nevada, retrieved the man’s body. His name has not been released pending notification of his family, the sheriff’s office said.

This story was originally published March 22, 2021 at 11:08 AM with the headline "Snowmobiler plunges 900 feet after ice shelf breaks on California cliff, rescuers say."