Grand Teton Rangers post two rescue missions

Grand Teton National Park rangers teamed with Teton County Search and Rescue volunteers to conduct a helicopter-based rescue of an injured skier Monday afternoon.

The skier was caught in an avalanche in Death Canyon early in the afternoon. Later Monday, rangers completed a ground-based rescue of a snow-shoer who was injured while jumping off boulders near Taggart Lake.

The first search started around 1 p.m. when the skier was caught in an avalanche in an area known as “Son of Apocolypse Couloir” on the south side of Death Canyon.

Two parties of two persons each were skiing the couloir. The sliding snow swept past one skier before hitting the other three. The last of that group, identified as Yuki Tsuji, 37, of Louisville, Colorado was knocked down.

The three other skiers, which included two medical providers, skied to her position and discovered she had a leg injury. They used a satellite communicator to text a message for help. Rangers called in a Teton County Search and Rescue helicopter, which flew the victim out of the area. She was taken to St. John’s Medical Center in Jackson for treatment. The other three skied out of the area.

The second search and rescue involved a party of two who snow-shoed around Taggart Lake. Cody Dumont, 24, of Lexington, Kentucky suffered leg injuries after jumping off a 10-foot boulder at around 3:30 p.m. His partner sent a text message for help.

Rangers skied into the area with a toboggan and medical gear to move Dumont to Taggart Lake Trailhead for transport out of the area.