Buried

Buried

Wednesday, November 10, 2021 - 6:00pm to 8:00pm
  • Library Hall
The 1982 Alpine Meadows Ski Patrol reckon with a deadly avalanche that strikes on their watch, a miracle survival story, and the aftermath that haunts them to this day.

Winner of the Audience Choice Award at Mountainfilm 2021.

See the new documentary film co-directed by Jared Drake and Steven Siig, and stay for the community conversation with members of Routt County Search & Rescue and the Steamboat Ski Area Ski Patrol.

In the early 1980s the Alpine Meadows Ski Patrol were the undisputed gods of winter in the mountain hamlet of Tahoe City, California, a sun-drenched wonderland of endless powder and parties. This sundry crew full of youthful hubris and a zest for explosives were guided by a newly minted avalanche forecaster named Jim Plehn. More thoughtful and strategic than the others, Plehn was a stickler for safety and protocol; he had to be at this avalanche-prone resort. The responsibility to keep the skiing public safe was an all-consuming obsession for him, which made the day of March 31, 1982 all the more devastating.

With the mountain closed due to high avalanche danger, but a skeleton crew on hand, a slide of unforeseeable magnitude broke free. Millions of pounds of snow hurtled down the side of the mountain demolishing the resort’s base lodge and burying the parking lot. The wreckage was unimaginable, a worst-case nightmare scenario, especially for Jim. But for the shell-shocked patrol team there was no time to dwell, seven missing victims were buried in the slide - co-workers, friends, family - and every passing second was precious. Over the next five days, through an unrelenting storm and unimaginable tragedy, the rescue team persevered. Innocence was lost, mortality faced and Mother Nature reckoned with, but through it all they never gave up hope for a miracle.

Masks are required to attend this live event in Library Hall.

This free community event is presented by Bud Werner Library, Steamboat Ski & Resort Corp. and Routt County Search & Rescue.

Run Time: 

95 min.