SAN MIGUEL COUNTY, Colo. — Rescuers located the body of a snowboarder Tuesday morning who was caught in an avalanche some time Monday in a backcountry area of San Miguel County.
In a Facebook post, the San Miguel County Sheriff's Office said that dispatchers were notified Monday night about a man who was overdue from his backcountry outing in the Waterfall Creek area of Ophir outside of Telluride.
A rescue mission was launched and continued into the night, the sheriff's office said. Tuesday morning, a search and rescue team resumed searching for the man using air resources.
Just after 10 a.m., the man's body was found. He was found suffering from traumatic injuries believed to be from an avalanche, the sheriff's office said.
He was identified as Dr. Peter Harrelson, 67, of Ophir.
"On behalf of all of us at the Sheriff's Office and our Search and Rescue team, I would like to express our condolences to the family and friends of this gentleman," said Sheriff Bill Masters. "I'd also like to thank our SAR team for their work in this inherently risky mission."
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The sheriff's office is still asking people to stay out of the Waterfall Creek area.
Avalanche danger has been high in recent days but this is the first fatality reported this season. However, a slide buried cars and resulted in a multi-day closure of Berthoud Pass.
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