newsminer.com

ANCHORAGE -- None of the five snowmachiners riding on Spencer Glacier saw the hole in the snow before one fell into a crevasse and died Saturday, said Pat Kuckertz, one of the riders.

Karl Jabas, 28, of Anchorage was killed after falling 50 feet down a crevasse near the top of the glacier.

"No one said they saw the crevasse and went around it," Kuckertz said. "Frankly, it wasn't like this guy was taking a bigger risk at that place. He's a skilled, advanced rider. He was pushing limits, but at that point anyone could have gone into the hole."

According to Alaska State Troopers, rescuers flown in by helicopter found Jabas dead 50 feet down the crevasse, covered with snow. His snowmachine was found 40 feet down. The body was recovered.

Kuckertz said the party had split into two groups and had met up about half a mile from the crevasse when they noticed Jabas was missing. Initially, they thought he was stuck in deep snow.

Kuckertz and another rider found out differently when they followed Jabas' snowmachine tracks to where they ended at the edge of the crevasse.

"We called for him," Kuckertz said, "and heard nothing."

Troopers responded with a helicopter and a three-man crew from the Alaska Mountain Rescue Group. Stan Olsen, a member of the group, was lowered by ropes into the crevasse to retrieve Jabas.

Olsen said there were a lot of open crevasses on the glacier, as well as a lot of snow bridges on them. There was no snow bridge where Jabas fell into the crevasse.

John Scudder of the Anchorage Snowmobile Club said riders should be cautious of soft snow and unstable snow bridges this time of year because they aren't getting a good freeze at night.