Search crews on Sunday found the body of one of three snowboarders buried under a huge avalanche, after two days of digging and probing through snow piled up dozens of feet deep in spots.
Mike Hebert, 19, of Orem, was found in just four feet of snow in Provo Canyon. He was identified by his driver’s license and cell phone, which were with the body when it was found late Sunday afternoon, Utah County Sheriff Jim Tracy said.
Hopeful that the bodies of the other snowboarders were nearby, searchers worked until about 7 p.m. Sunday in hopes of finding Hebert’s friends Adam Merz, 18, and Rod Newberry, 20. Authorities said a storm expected to dump more than a foot of snow would prevent the search from resuming Monday.
The three were snowboarding with two other friends Friday when they were swept away by the avalanche, in a remote area with no avalanche control about 25 miles northeast of Provo. The two other friends survived.