Skier has been missing two days, and blizzard is slowing search, California rescuers say

Rescue crews in California have resumed their search for a skier who went missing on Saturday, local media reported.

Rory Angelotta, 43, went missing after going to the Northstar California Ski Resort, where he worked, NBC Bay Area reported.

He was last seen on a ski lift at around 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 25, KCRA reported. The Placer County Sheriff’s Office told the outlet that Angelotta was scheduled to have dinner with friends that night, but never showed up.

Angelotta was reported missing at around 10 p.m. that Christmas night, and his car was found in the Northstar parking lot. He made a cellphone call at around 11:25 a.m., but calls to his phone afterward went straight to voicemail, The Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

Search efforts are being hindered by the heavy snow in the area — about 6 feet of fresh snow has fallen at the resort since Angelotta’s disappearance, The Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

Officials with the sheriff’s office told KCRA that searchers have been unable to find tracks or other evidence of where Angelotta may have gone. Angelotta is new to the area, but is an experienced skier who officials believe had avalanche equipment on him, KCRA reported.

“Due to extreme weather conditions it’s extremely difficult to get searchers up there,” Placer County Sgt. Mike Powers told The Reno Gazette-Journal. “Due to closed roads, our searchers can’t make it up. It’s difficult even once we get people without whiteout conditions.”

Northstar was closed on Dec. 26 and 27 due to blizzard conditions and heavy overnight snowfall on the mountain, the resort said on Twitter.

The sheriff’s office said it might be too dangerous to even deploy rescuers too far into out-of-bounds areas, KCRA reported.

The Placer County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News.

This story was originally published December 27, 2021 at 2:34 PM with the headline "Skier has been missing two days, and blizzard is slowing search, California rescuers say."