It appears to be the first fatal avalanche this winter in Alaska and the country's deadliest since an avalanche in Washington's Cascade Mountains killed three climbers in 2023.

The three men killed Tuesday by a massive avalanche during a guided heli-skiing trip in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood came together in Alaska after meeting years ago in Minnesota.

Alaska State Troopers on Thursday released the identities of the three missing men caught in the slide: Dave Linder, 39, of Florida; Charles Eppard, 39, of Montana, and Jeremy Leif, 38, of Minnesota.

Game wardens are investigating after an apex predator was found wrapped in a tarp along a Montana roadway — without a head or tail, officials said. The dead mountain lion was found near mile marker three on the Troy Mine Road south of Troy in the northwestern corner of the state, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks said in a Feb. 25 news release.

Three heliskiers, David Linder, Charles Eppard, and Jeremy Leif, were caught in a Tuesday avalanche near Girdwood. Recovery efforts were delayed due to weather, but Troopers remain hopeful for improve

The Alaska State Troopers on Thursday said the men were 39-year-old David Linder, of Florida; 39-year-old Charles Eppard, of Montana; and 38-year-old Jeremy Leif, of Minnesota. Friends said all ...