Bay Area couple survives avalanche at Squaw Valley resort near Lake Tahoe
LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (KGO) -- A Bay Area snowboarding couple is feeling very lucky to be alive after they were buried by an avalanche while skiing at Squaw Valley on Friday. Evan and Kahlynn Huck from San Francisco were on their first run of the day in white out conditions when disaster struck.
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"There was lots of fresh powder it was super fun, then I heard someone yell and I looked back and saw and eight foot wall of snow, a second later it hit us," said snowboarder Evan Huck.
Huck says the snow was like a tsunami, overtaking him within seconds.
"I was conscious for about 45 seconds while I was under the snow then I ran out of oxygen and passed out," said Huck.
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Somehow, his wife was able to free herself from the snow.
"I was inconsolable wondering if my husband was gone," said Kahlynn Huck.
Luckily, the tip of Evan's snowboard was sticking out of the snow. Giving good Samaritans an exact location to dig him out.
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Skier Joe Breault was one of those heroes who dug him out and helped Huck regain consciousness.
"He opened his eyes and looked right at me and said, 'where's my wife,'" said Breault.
Remarkably, the Huck's weren't injured.
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The ski patrol says three other people were buried in the avalanche, two of them went to the hospital with injuries .
Evan Huck says he's now got a new lease on life thanks to those fellow boarders and skiers who jumped in to help him.
"I was so impressed by their preparation and training I want to thank them for being heroes and saving my life," said Huck.
The couple plans to continue their three week snowboarding vacation through California and the Rocky Mountains.
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