Rescuers near Revelstoke safely conclude two separate searches

REVELSTOKE, B.C. – A group of five skiers has been found safe near Revelstoke after spending part of the night lost in the backcountry.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Kurt Grubinsky says a search was launched when the group of Vernon-area residents was reported overdue Tuesday, Jan. 24, after spending the day at the Revelstoke Resort, in southeastern B.C.

He says the five had ventured out of bounds but managed to find their way back and take refuge in a hut, where they were found early Wednesday morning, Jan. 25.

Revelstoke Search and Rescue also conducted an unrelated search Tuesday night for a missing backcountry skier and Grubinsky says that man was also found Wednesday.

He says it's increasingly common for skiers to become lost around the Revelstoke Resort because they can easily access the backcountry from the resort's lifts

Avalanche Canada is maintaining an advisory that unusual local conditions create the potential for increased avalanches in northwestern B.C., through the Rockies, and the Columbia region, where the searches were focused.