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Avalanche forecaster dies in climbing fall

LEAVENWORTH — Mar 14 - An avalanche forecaster and mountain guide died last week while climbing outside Leavenworth. Matt Primomo worked as an avalanche forecaster with the Forest Service Northwest Avalanche Center. He previously worked as a Forest Service avalanche forecaster in Utah and Colorado, as well as in Chile. Primomo died of injuries sustained in an “unwitnessed fall” from Icicle Buttress, according to Chelan County Coroner Wayne Harris. Icicle Buttress is a popular climbing area along Icicle Road southwest of Leavenworth. A GoFundMe account has raised more than $105,000 for his family as of Wednesday morning.
More ... (Japan Times)

Two dead, one injured in avalanche at Hokkaido ski town

Several articles on this have been archived in the incidents file, follow the More link below. One of them provides some background and insight into the growth of backcountry skiing in Japan.

Two backcountry skiers from New Zealand have died in an avalanche on Japan’s northernmost main island of Hokkaido, police said Tuesday. A man and woman died Monday on the 1,898-meter (6,227-foot) Mount Yotei, the Hokkaido prefectural police said. A third skier, a man also from New Zealand, survived with a shoulder injury, Kyodo News said. All three were residents in the area and worked as a tour guide and seasonal workers, police said. They were reportedly part of a group of six backcountry skiers.
More ...(Avalanche-Center.org archives)