A 60-year-old man was killed and five others were trapped after an avalanche swept through part of a Washington state ski resort on Saturday.

Pierce County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Darren Moss said the avalanche was reported around 11 a.m. in the Silver Basin area of Crystal Mountain, which is located about 85 miles (137 kilometers) southeast of Seattle.

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Authorities did not reveal the identity of the 60-year-old man who was killed but said he was not breathing after being pulled out of the snow. They added that despite CPR efforts by another skier, the elderly man did not survive. 

Meanwhile, other skiers in his group managed to rescue themselves with the help of two witnesses who saw them get swept up by the snow. All were wearing avalanche beacons.

Authorities said that all of those trapped in the avalanche were experienced backcountry skiers. A warning has been issued against skiing in the area, which was just inside the boundaries of Crystal Mountain Resort. 

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Frank DeBerry, the resort’s president and CEO, said all six men held the ski resort’s uphill travel passes, which means they were registered with ski patrol, participated in an orientation on how and where to access backcountry skiing through the resort’s property and were required to check snow conditions prior to their excursion.

“Skiers can travel at will wherever they want in the national forest. They had gone out into the forest but ended up back in bounds (of the resort) where this slide occurred,” DeBerry said

The avalanche came amid the season’s first major snowfall. The area is under a winter storm warning until Sunday morning, with the National Weather Service saying 12 to 15 inches (38 centimeters) of snow is possible for areas above 2,000 feet (610 meters).

“We’ve had a late start to the season and now we’ve gone from virtually no snow to a giant snow storm. People got excited,” DeBerry said. “We all have to remember that it’s a sport that carries risk.”

With inputs from the Associated Press