As rescue workers recovered the bodies of three men killed in an avalanche Saturday near Golden, B.C., family and friends confirmed the identities of the victims, who all hailed from central Alberta.
They were identified as Norbert Mueller, 49, Andy Gebhardt and his son Jarrett Gebhardt. The men are from a rural area near Halkirk, Alta., about 100 kilometres east of Red Deer.
Mueller’s younger brother Mike Mueller, 46, said his family is devastated by the loss.
"It is devastating," he said. "I don’t know what to say. I’m at a loss for words."
He described his brother as an "outgoing and generous" man who was "full of life."
Some of the family have travelled to Golden to wait for the bodies to be recovered from the mountain, he said.
"We’re just waiting."
He said his brother is survived by a wife and two sons. One of those sons, Travis Mueller, was on the mountain when the avalanche struck but was rescued by another group who witnessed the incident. He was taken to hospital but didn’t suffer any serious injuries, he said.
Norbert had worked for most of his life in the oilpatch, his brother said, but recently changed jobs to work in a coal mine closer to his home.
The family lives on a farm, which kept Norbert busy during the summers. The family would spend their winters snowmobiling, an activity they looked forward to every year.
"That was his thing. It was a family thing," Mueller said. "That’s why they had their winter sports. Here, summers were always busier – always lots to do on the farm."
He said his brother knew the risks associated with snowmobiling and was an experienced rider.
"They’re not rookies out there by any means," he said. "It’s rough. Every time you go out there it’s an avalanche risk."
The loss was made even more difficult with the news that the Gebhardts had also died in the avalanche, because the families are close friends and neighbours.
The bodies of the three men who died in the slide were recovered Sunday morning, said RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk.
According to witnesses, the slide was triggered when two of the snowmobilers were high marking up on the slope while the other two men watched from below, said Moskaluk.
The slide thundered down and buried all four men. Several other snowmobilers witnessed the avalanche.
As many as 20 people converged on the scene and dug out the four buried men, according to Moskaluk.
One man from the first party was resuscitated; efforts to revive the other three weren’t successful.
A spot GPS beacon emergency activation alerted the Golden RCMP to the emergency. Mounties immediately called in Golden and District Search and Rescue and made radio contact with members of the Golden Back Country Lodges who were on scene and able to pass on details, said Moskaluk.
All four buried men were wearing transceivers, which helped rescuers find them immediately following the slide, he said.
It’s not clear who activated the GPS device, which alerted RCMP to the developing emergency, Moskaluk added.
Golden RCMP and search and rescue teams returned to the backcountry Sunday morning in a helicopter to recover the bodies.
"They assessed the area and deemed it safe for them to land. They were able to land at the slide site and conduct the recovery immediately," Moskaluk said.
The avalanche was classified as a size 3.5 – large enough to bury a car or damage a wood frame house.
It occurred in a backcountry area popular with snowmobilers. The survivor was treated in hospital for shock and minor physical injuries.
"We’re assisting the families in respect to the incident," said Moskaluk.
Highmarking involves climbing high and fast up a mountain with a snowmobile.
When done in avalanche terrain, "essentially people are playing Russian roulette with the slope of the hill," Moskaluk said.
"These machines ascend, they’re cutting into the snow surfaces, in many instances, destabilizing sheets of snow that are causing these massive slides."
Tom Riley, a public avalanche bulletin forecaster with the Canadian Avalanche Centre, noted that Saturday’s slide occurred in an area on the west slope of the Rockies not covered by the centre’s bulletins.
Golden is located near the provincial border with Alberta and is approximately 140 kilometres from Banff National Park.
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