Quick thinking and preparation saved the life of a Utah man who had become entrenched in an avalanche while out riding snowmobiles with his brother.
On Christmas Eve, the Hansen brothers, Braeden and Hunter, were traversing the Franklin Basin near the Idaho border when the near-tragedy began. That was when Braeden watched his brother become overwhelmed by an avalanche.
“I turned around to watch the slide hit Hunter and just watched him kind of get tumbled and buried and then lost sight of him,” he told NBC News.
Two Utah Brothers Share Tale of Harrowing Avalanche Escape
Hunter was taken nearly 150 yards away from the initial contact. Fortunately, the brothers came prepared as Hunter initiated his beacon which notified Braeden where he was. Hunter was about two feet under the snow when his brother spotted his glove just sticking out.
“I just cleared the snow away from his head and got his helmet off so that he could start breathing again, and then just started digging his body out from there,” Braeden explained.
Hearing Hunter retell what the ordeal felt like is pretty scary. He described it as being stuck in concrete and “the most violent thing I’ve ever felt. He added that it was near impossible to breathe and recalls by the time his brother arrived to save him he was likely on his last few breaths.
It sounds like he avoided any serious damage, noting that he will be getting his leg checked out for a fracture but other than that he’s all good. Talk about a miracle.
It’s easy to not view snow as threatening, but avalanches have got to be the most horrifying things to hear about. An Olympic snowboarder recently died after being trapped in one, which goes to show you how not even the most avid mountaingoers are immune to the dangers.
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