Abstract: Employee #1, part of a two-man solitude ski patrol team, was positioned on a ridge overlooking a ski area. He threw explosives down the slope, expecting them to trigger an avalanche where they detonated. Instead, the snow plate fractured above where he was standing. Employee #1 was caught in the resulting avalanche and carried 800 vertical ft down the mountainside, over cliffs and through trees. Other ski patrol members located him within 15 minutes, using a homing device and snow probes. Employee #1 was evacuated by Life Flight to the University of Utah hospital, where he was treated for hypothermia and internal injuries.