The shocking moment two snowmobilers went underwater after a 50mph avalanche roared down the mountain in Wyoming was captured in stunning first-person video, with one of them being rescued minutes before he would have suffocated.
Mason Zak and Jake Dahl were both buried under five feet of snow during a day trip with friends in Star Valley last Friday.
Zak notices that Dahl has fallen out of his vehicle and repeatedly shouts “Avi!” to his friend before the snow appears and streams down the powdery mountainside in footage from his camera.
He can be heard saying “no” quietly a few times as the snow approaches, attempting to escape in the vehicle seconds before plunging into the darkness.
“I saw that Jake had fallen off and I wanted to go there to see if he needed help and when I looked up I saw the hills above him breaking up and started watching Avalanche as often as I could shout,” Zak said. “Everything happened so fast.”
The avalanche is heading toward Mason Zak. Zak and Jake Dahl were both buried under five feet of snow during a day trip with friends in Star Valley
Zak can be heard saying “no” a few times as the snow approaches and attempts to escape in the vehicle, seconds before plunging into the darkness
The friends had decided to ride their snowmobiles down another section around 4 p.m. when the shock avalanche struck.
“I thought I was down in the safe area.” “I watched Jake being buried and kept an eye on him so I would know where he was buried in case I needed to rescue him,” Zak said.
“When I looked at it, I didn't even realize it was coming that fast and it just hit me on the back, threw me forward off my snowmobile and actually dragged me around a patch of trees.”
Seconds later, Zak was buried under a pile of snow, leaving only the sound of his frantic breathing audible in a blacked-out video.
Mason, a 23-year-old business owner from Minnesota, was buried for seven minutes before he was rescued by a group of passersby who were using equipment to help locate victims trapped in an avalanche.
He said he “immediately lost hope” because he couldn’t move under the snow and thought “no one would find us.”
Mason claims that luckily a rescue party reached him just in time.
He believes he would have succumbed to carbon dioxide poisoning if they had arrived five minutes later.
Meanwhile, Jake, a 25-year-old business owner from Wyoming, was fortunately only buried for about 30 seconds and was able to fight his way out despite fears that he was “done.”
Mason said: “It was a normal day – we had one of the best snow days yet.” At the end of the day we decided to tackle one more hill. I had the idea of trying something steeper.
“We went to this other hill and didn't think much about it.” I think Jake went up first, I went up second and our other friend went up third.
“I ended up lying face down with my palms behind my back.” I could move a few fingers, that was it. I was about two to three feet underground. I was completely buried, nothing of me was visible. It could have hit me at about 50 miles per hour.'
Mason Zak on his snowmobile after the incident.
Mason said memories flashed before his eyes as he accepted the reality of dying under the snow.
He said, “We think I was underwater for about five to seven minutes.” I thought Jake and our other friend were both buried, so I immediately lost hope.
“I thought, “No one knows where we are” and “No one will find us.” I tried moving around a little, but that didn't work. At this point there was silence. It was so dark and quiet.
“I don't think I blacked out, but I fell into some kind of dream.” Key memories flashed through my mind. I imagined my mother, my father and my brother.'
He added: “Realistically I probably had about five minutes left. “I think I had carbon dioxide poisoning when I came out. I had a pretty bad headache. I was just amazed that I was saved.
“I got out, hugged the boys and thanked them for saving me. “I don't know if they would have found me without the beacons. I feel so lucky to be alive. I now have a whole new respect for the mountain.”
Fellow adrenaline junkie Jake also said the experience gave him a newfound gratitude after almost losing his life.
Recalling what happened to him, the father of two said: “It just kind of swallowed me up.” It took me about 75 meters down and I started freaking out. Luckily it stopped and my left arm was just far enough above the snow to dig my face out.
“My face was probably about a foot deep. I could hardly breathe. I just screamed as I pulled my face out. I was underwater for about 30 seconds. I thought I was done.
“I thought about my girlfriend and my children. I was afraid that a second wave would come. That kind of opened my eyes to what could happen out there. It scared us all and woke everyone up. We're lucky to be alive.'
The two have been racing together in Star Valley for five years.