Cal/OSHA Fines Guiding Company $151,300 After Deadliest Avalanche in California History

California workplace regulators have fined Blackbird Mountain Guides $151,300 following the February avalanche near Castle Peak that killed nine people, making it the deadliest avalanche in California’s recorded history. The fines were issued by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), according to the California Department of Industrial Relations. Three Blackbird Mountain Guides employees and six clients were killed when an avalanche struck a group of backcountry skiers near the Frog Lake Huts on February 17, 2026.



Related: Investigation Begins into Deadly Castle Peak, CA, Avalanche as Families of Victims Speak Out



The largest citation, $81,000, was issued for failing to correct an imminent hazard posed by traveling in avalanche terrain while the avalanche danger was rated high. Cal/OSHA classified the violation as willful-serious and accident-related.

The remaining citations include:



$16,200 for failing to adequately identify and assess avalanche hazards — serious, accident-related

$16,200 for failing to provide effective employee training — serious

$16,200 for failing to assess the need for protective equipment — serious

$16,200 for failing to establish and maintain an effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program — serious

$500 for deficiencies in the company’s Heat Illness Prevention Plan

$5,000 for failing to report the three employee fatalities to Cal/OSHA within the required timeframe





Blackbird Mountain Guides has formally appealed the Cal/OSHA citations, disputing the agency’s findings and maintaining that the company operated in compliance with both state regulations and established professional guiding standards. In a statement, Blackbird expressed condolences for the nine people who died and praised the emergency responders and community members who assisted following the avalanche. “The citations do not reflect the reality of our profession or the safety program we have built,” Blackbird Mountain Guides said. The company said it believes it operated in full compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and the safety frameworks used throughout the professional mountain-guiding industry.

Blackbird emphasized that backcountry guiding presents fundamentally different working conditions from conventional workplaces. The company argued that mountain guides operate in dynamic wilderness environments where conditions can change rapidly, rather than controlled environments such as construction sites. The company also pointed to the professional qualifications of the guides involved in the trip.

According to Blackbird, all of the guides on the Castle Peak trip had years of experience along with American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) and avalanche certifications and training. “Guides pursue knowledge and excellence as a lifelong responsibility and the guides on this trip approached their work with care and professionalism,” said Blackbird owner Zeb Blais, an IFMGA-certified guide. Blackbird said it will continue cooperating with the various investigations into the avalanche and hopes the appeal process will demonstrate that the company complied with the professional and state standards governing mountain guiding.



Related: ”We are Heartbroken” — Blackbird Mountain Guides Speak After Castle Peak, CA, Avalanche



It is important to understand that the appeal means the Cal/OSHA findings are being contested and should not be presented as established findings of wrongdoing. The citations remain significant, particularly the $81,000 willful-serious citation concerning travel in avalanche terrain during a period of high avalanche danger, but the company’s formal appeal gives Blackbird a direct avenue to challenge the agency’s conclusions.

The Castle Peak avalanche struck on February 17, 2026, during a period of severe winter weather near Castle Peak, close to the Frog Lake Huts. The slide was approximately 100 feet wide and traveled about 400 feet down the mountain, burying nine members of a 15-person group. Three Blackbird guides and six clients died. One guide and four clients survived.

The victims were identified as :



Andrew Alissandratos, 34

Michael Henry, 30

Nicole “Niki” Choo, 42

Carrie Atkin, 42

Liz Clabaugh, 52

Danielle Keatley, 44

Kate Morse, 45

Caroline Sekar, 45

Kate Vitt, 43





A recently released report from the Nevada County Coroner’s Office found that all nine victims died from asphyxia due to snow burial. The finding provides an official account of the cause of death, although it does not answer the broader questions surrounding why the avalanche occurred.



Related: More Details Emerge from Coroner and Independent Report on Castle Peak, CA, Avalanche



Blackbird Mountain Guides also commissioned an independent investigation into the accident. The report was prepared by Don Sharaf, an avalanche professional with 35 years of experience in guiding, forecasting and accident investigation. According to the investigation, GPS data showed that the group attempted two or three times to cross a creek that guides had identified as a safer route. Open water and steep creek banks prevented the group from completing the crossing. The party subsequently traveled through relatively low-angle, treed terrain approximately 390 vertical feet below the avalanche’s start zone when the slide released.



The investigation noted that dense trees and terrain features may have obscured the avalanche start zone above the group, potentially making it difficult for the guides to recognize that they were traveling within an avalanche path. The report did not assign direct blame to Blackbird Mountain Guides and did not determine whether mistakes were made. It also could not conclusively determine what triggered the avalanche.

The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office opened a criminal investigation following the avalanche. The case has since been referred to the Nevada County District Attorney’s Office, which is reviewing the evidence and determining whether criminal charges should be filed.

The Cal/OSHA citations are separate from that investigation which remains ongoing.

 

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