Efforts to recover the three men who died in an avalanche Tuesday while they were on a guided heli-ski trip in the Chugach Mountains near Girdwood were halted due to dangerous conditions and difficult terrain — and may not resume until conditions improve,

Dangerous avalanche conditions in the area persist, stalling recovery efforts and prompting warnings from forecasters.

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.

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.

This is Alaska’s first fatal avalanche reported this season. It is also the country’s deadliest since February 2023.

Alaska Wildlife Troopers said an avalanche buried three skiers under a blanket of snow between 40 and 100 feet deep in a small resort town.

The depth of the snow kept the heli-ski company from being able to recover the skiers Tuesday, an Alaska State Troopers spokesman said.

Three skiers who had flown by helicopter to a remote mountain range were swept away by an avalanche and likely killed under the weight of dozens of feet of snow, Alaska State Troopers said Wednesday.

Charlie Eppard, originally from Mankato, and Jeremy Leif are two of the three skiers who went missing following an avalanche near a ski resort in Alaska.