Utah Snowmobiler Dies in Avalanche in Monte Cristo Backcountry

Scott Wright, 37, was buried under deep snow while snowmobiling with a friend, marking Utah's first avalanche fatality of the year.

Scott Wright, a 37-year-old from Evanston, Wyoming, was killed in an avalanche on February 3 while snowmobiling in the Monte Cristo Snowmobile Area near the Rich and Cache County line in Utah.
Wright was snowmobiling with a friend when the avalanche occurred; his friend was unable to locate him and called for emergency assistance.
Rescue efforts began around 3 p.m., and Wright's body was recovered nearly four hours later at approximately 6:30 p.m., buried under deep snow in a large hard slab avalanche.
Dave Sparks, a rescuer, described the avalanche as one of the largest he had seen, with slabs of snow up to five feet thick and 12 feet long, complicating the recovery operation.
This incident is Utah's first avalanche-related death of 2025; last year, avalanches claimed four lives in the state.