Avalanche carried Wisconsin snowmobiler into creek where he died

JACKSON — The 24-year-old Wisconsin man who died Thursday southeast of Smoot was killed by an avalanche that broke loose above him and carried him into a creek below.

“His sled landed on top of him, six to seven feet of debris piled in and he was facedown in the water,” said Frank Carus, director of the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center, who investigated the fatality.

Carus said the tragedy demonstrates the danger of terrain traps — areas like gullies or streambeds where even a small amount of snow can bury a person.

“You just always want to think twice about those terrain traps bec...