A snowstorm has shut down a popular Colorado ski area and a resort town in the latest in a string of deadly incidents that have put an icy mood on a region still reeling from a deadly 2014 blizzard.
The resort town of Crested Butte, about 100 miles northwest of Denver, was forced to close its ski area on Tuesday due to a mandatory evacuee evacuation order, according to officials.
The Colorado Avalanche Rescue Team said two people were killed and two others were injured in the snowstorm that closed the resort town, which includes an 18-hole golf course.
“The resort is closed and all operations are being suspended for the foreseeable future due to the extreme snowstorm,” the company said in a statement.
“Safety is our top priority and we will be working closely with the local authorities and resort management to ensure that all operations go smoothly and safely for the public and guests.”
The resort is one of two ski areas in Colorado that were closed Monday due to mandatory evacuations, the first in nearly a month.
The resorts in the town of Snowbird and the Snowbird Ski Area in Summit were closed because of mandatory evacuations, said Steve Bohn, a spokesman for the resort.
Bohn said they were not open Monday.
“They are open now,” Bohn told The Associated Press by phone Tuesday.
“We have no closure orders yet, so they’re still open.
We have a team here in the ski area, and they’re doing everything we can to get everyone safely home.”
The avalanche-prone resort town is about 10 miles northwest, about 80 miles from the resort city of Boulder.
In January, a avalanche killed a ski instructor at a nearby resort and injured eight people, including two children, in a remote area.
The Avalanche Rescue Teams team was dispatched to the area about 7:45 a.m.
Monday to assist the local ski area in managing the emergency.
Officials said the avalanche was not a serious situation, and it did not have any injuries.
“There are no injuries or fatalities at this time,” the team said in its statement.
The snowstorm, which was not the result of a storm, also closed the area’s roads.
“Snowbird and Summit have been closed due to avalanche evacuations and road closures due to snowstorm conditions,” the resort’s statement said.
“Resort operations are suspended for all guests due to severe avalanche conditions.”
