Libby man, 49, dies in Spar Mountain area avalanche

  Attempts to resuscitate a 49-year-old Libby man buried when a wall of snow cascaded down upon him and a companion Saturday afternoon were unscuccessful, reminding Lincoln County residents of the dangers of back-country travels.

   Bryan Harlow, 49, was snowmobiling Saturday with three male friends when he another man, Todd Byington, 47, were overwhelmed by the avalanche at about 1:15 p.m. The four men, which also included Nathan Schwegel, 33, and Jesse Mugford, 27, were traveling near the Idaho border. Schwegel and Mugford were not overcome by the avalanche. All men are from Libby.

   The men were riding their snowmobiles about two miles north of Spar Peak, which is about 17 miles southwest of Troy, in the West Cabinet Range near the Idaho border.

   It was Schwegel who called 911, a call that was transferred to Lincoln County Dispatch from where it was received in Idaho.

   According to the Sheriff’s Department report, Schwegel told dispatch “two  snowmobilers in the party had been caught in a backcountry avalanche. One of the two avalanche victims was recovered. The other was recovered but was not breathing and the other two men were performing CPR," Schwegel told dispatch. Schwegel said he had to ride his snowmobile about two miles from the avalanche site to obtain cell-phone reception. The cell-phone signal was used to assist with pinpointing the location of the avalanche. Schwegel’s call was received by the Lincoln County Dispatch at 2:04 p.m. Saturday.

 David Thompson Search & Rescue responded. The ALERT helicopter crew of Kalispell also responded. The Air-One helicopter from Two Bear Air also of Kalispell also was summoned.

   Sheriff’s Office Detective Nate Scofield responded along with Kootenai National Forest Avalanche Specialist Jon Jeresek of Libby, representing the Flathead Avalanche Center. U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officers also were on hand. All responders met at a staging and parking area well away from the remote avalanche site.

 The ALERT helicopter arrived at the avalanche site first and reported that there was no location to land near the area. The Air-One rescue helicopter arrived next, at about 4 p.m. and was able to lift Harlow from the scene.

   Investigators learned that the snowmobilers had stopped in a low-lying area within trees and were not moving at the time the avalanche occurred. The men attempted to move clear of the avalanche, but Harlow and Byington were caught in the onrushing wall of snow.

  When the avalanche ceased, Schwegel and Mugford were able to hear Byington yelling, found him buried with only his face exposed and dug him out. They all then used Byington’s avalanche beacon to locate Harlow’s avalanche beacon signal. They dug down and found Harlow buried under four to six feet of compacted snow.

   Harlow was not breathing, and Byington and Mugford began CPR as Schwegel rode his snowmobile out of the area to find a cell-phone signal. Byington and Mugford were unsuccessful to revive Harlow.

 An on-site investigation was not possible because of the high avalanche hazard in the area. Investigators conducted an aerial survey of the scene aboard the Air-One helicopter. Jeresek classified the movement as a D3-sized avalanche, capable of damaging a vehicle or a small building.

  Jeresek said it's unlikely a site investigation will occur until snow-pack conditions improve.