Four skiers were killed Saturday in an avalanche in Mill Creek Canyon.
Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said on Twitter that Saturday afternoon there were four fatalities in the Mill Creek Canyon area. He said there is rescue equipment on site.
The avalanche occurred near Wilson Peak, on the ridge line separating Big Cottonwood Canyon and Mill Creek Canyon, according to Drew Hardesty with the Utah Avalanche Center. He said it happened on steep terrain facing north.
Four is the highest number of deaths in an avalanche in the Wasatch Mountains since 1914, according to the Utah Avalanche Center. It would also coincide with the state record. Four people died in an avalanche triggered by the skier in the Gold Basin near Moab in 1992.
Three were killed in an avalanche that devastated 15 people in Provo Canyon, near Sundance Resort, in 2003.
Governor Spencer Cox has tweeted that the deaths are a terrible tragedy. He said people should be very careful due to the current avalanche conditions.
Hardesty said the victims were experienced skiers and well known in the community. He also described his deaths as a terrible tragedy.
This story will be updated