In what is believed to be the largest single incident avalanche death toll this ski season, five men taking part in an event to promote safety in back country skiing and snowboarding were killed near Loveland ski area in Colorado on Saturday.
The five dead men, all in their early thirties, were all carrying avalanche beacons and were equipped with special avalanche safety devices including Avalungs and float packs.
"Everything was about safety. Our goal was about being safe. The goal for us was just getting together to talk about safety and try some new gear," Mike Bennett, who rescued one survivor of the six participants, told the Denver Post after rescuing.
The event called "the Rocky Mountain High Backcountry Bash" was intended to raise consciousness and money for snowriding education for the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, according to local media reports.
The five deaths nearly doubled the number of avalanche deaths in Colorado this year which now stands at 11 and was the biggest death toll from a single avalanche in the state for more than 50 years.
Closer to home four climbers were killed in an avalanche near Glencoe ski area in Scotland in January and a further three close to Cairngorm in February, altogether 128 avalanches were reported in Scottish mountains this season.