Dangerous avalanche conditions in the area persist, stalling recovery efforts and prompting warnings from forecasters.

It appears to be the first fatal avalanche this winter in Alaska and the country's deadliest since an avalanche in Washington's Cascade Mountains killed three climbers in 2023.

The three men killed Tuesday by a massive avalanche during a guided heli-skiing trip in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood came together in Alaska after meeting years ago in Minnesota.

Three people are feared to be dead after being buried by a large avalanche while on a guided heli-skiing trip near Girdwood, Alaska, authorities said. (Dreamstime) Three skiers identified Thursday as feared killed in an Alaskan avalanche had Minnesota connections.

Alaska State Troopers continue to search for three backcountry skiers who are missing after an avalanche earlier this week.

Officials at the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Center have confirmed that three skiers on a heli-skiing tour died in an avalanche near Girdwood, Alaska, southeast of Anchorage, this week. The avalanche occurred on March 4 at about 3:30 pm.

A radio station owner and his two friends were killed after heli-skiing onto a rugged Alaskan mountain and getting trapped in a massive avalanche on Tuesday. David Linder, 39, Charles Eppard, 39, and Jeremy Leif,