Search and Rescue Teams Search for Three Snowboarders; Found, Nine Hours Later, and Cited for Out-of-Bounds Riding

Big Bear Lake, CA — Three snowboarders were lost and then found yesterday (Sunday, February 21). The three, two men and one woman, all in their 20s and from areas outside of the Big Bear Valley, had been snowboarding at Bear Mountain Resort yesterday afternoon and, given bad weather and poor visibility, the three ended up out of bounds, beyond the ski area. The Big Bear Sheriff’s Department received the call around 3pm on Sunday, and deployed Sheriff’s personnel, who searched for the three snowboarders, with the assistance of Bear Valley Search and Rescue volunteers, and staff from Bear Mountain Resort, including ski patrol. The three snowboarders were found on the backside of the mountain, near Rattlesnake Creek just after midnight this morning. According to the Big Bear Sheriff’s Station, the three adults were OK upon being recovered—just cold after being out in the elements for over nine hours. They were attended to by fire department paramedics, though did not need to go to the hospital for treatment. The snowboarders did receive citations, however, for snowboarding out of bounds.