Two Hikers Die Near Snoqualmie Pass

Two people are dead from an avalanche and the third in their hiking party suffered a broken leg while hiking near Snow Lake in the Cascade Mountains, north of Alpental.

A second group of four hikers needs rescuing on the Denny Creek Trail, near Exit 42 on I-90. A rescue operation is currently underway.

Snow Lake Hikers: Three people, a married couple, ages 33 (female) and her husband, age 38 went hiking on Friday night with a friend, age 38. When they didn’t return as planned on Sunday, the father of one of them went to Alpental yesterday (December 3rd) and found their vehicle in the parking lot. He called the Sheriff's Office at 4:20 PM. A search and rescue operation began yesterday afternoon.

Denny Creek Hikers: Four people, ages 22 to 55 years, three men and a woman, went hiking on Sunday. However heavy snow kept them from getting back to their car Sunday afternoon, and one of them called the Sheriff's from their cell phone at 3:10 PM. They were about 2 ½ to 3 miles up the trail. A rescue operation began.

Heavy snow prevented ground rescuers from getting to either party. Intense rain on Monday contributed by making the avalanche danger extreme, also preventing ground rescuers from reaching either party.

Guardian One was sent in yesterday, but the high winds and inclement weather kept it grounded at Alpental. Similarly, a navy helicopter from NAS Whidbey could not be used once it arrived. Finally, a heavy helicopter from Fairchild AFB near Spokane flew in today and rescued the injured Snow Lake hiker.