New Hampshire

Officials ID Man Who Died in Mount Washington Avalanche

A spokesman for the White Mountain National Forest says 32-year-old Nicholas Benedix of Campton, New Hampshire, was buried under about 5 feet (1.52 meters) of snow

Authorities have identified a skier who died in an avalanche on Mount Washington.

A spokesman for the White Mountain National Forest says 32-year-old Nicholas Benedix of Campton, New Hampshire, was buried under about 5 feet (1.52 meters) of snow in Raymond Cataract for about an hour Thursday afternoon before rescuers dug him out.

Benedix was skiing alone and was pronounced dead several hours later.

The spokesman said the avalanche was approximately 135 feet wide at the crown.

Thursday's avalanche was one of at least four human-triggered avalanches on the mountain that day as slabs of snow formed by wind warmed up and weakened.

At 6,288 feet (1,916 meters) tall, Mount Washington is the Northeast's highest peak and is notorious for its bad weather.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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