8 skiers found dead, 1 missing after massive Lake Tahoe avalanche

Eight skiers who went missing this week after an avalanche near Lake Tahoe in California have been found dead and one is still missing, authorities said Wednesday. 

Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said during a news conference that authorities have told the families the mission has moved from rescue to recovery.

"They were on their way back to camp when the avalanche actually hit," Moon said. "It took these search and rescue crews hours just to find those first few survivors that we're talking."

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The avalanche is the deadliest in the U.S. since 1981, when 11 climbers were killed on Mount Rainier, Washington.

Six survivors were found Tuesday night buried in the snow, Moon said, who described the weather conditions as "extreme."

"I would say is an understatement. Lots of snow, gale force winds, winds, making it impossible to see," she said. 

The skiers were on a three-day trek in Northern California’s Sierra Nevada as a winter storm pummeled the West Coast. The six survivors used equipment to shelter themselves and were trying to stay warm while waiting to be rescued, Moon said. 

The survivors located three others who had died, Moon said.

Search and rescue crews were dispatched to the Castle Peak area of the Sierra Nevada after a 911 call reporting the avalanche had buried 15 skiers.

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Heavy snow and the threat of additional avalanches slowed the rescue effort, authorities said. 

Officials noted that most of the rescue crews are volunteers. 

"The vast majority of these individuals are volunteers. They, a lot of time, buy their own equipment. They train on their own time, and they put a big investment into it," said Dan O'Keefe, the chief of law enforcement at the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services.

The area near Donner Summit is one of the snowiest places in the Western Hemisphere and was closed to the public for nearly a century until just a few years ago. 

Blackbird Mountain Guides, which notified authorities about the avalanche, said in a statement said the group, including four guides, was returning to the trailhead when the avalanche occurred.

"Our thoughts are with the missing individuals, their families, and first responders in the field," Blackbird said in a statement Wednesday. The company said it is helping authorities in the search.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.