Expert Utah Skier, 37, Found Dead One Day After Going Missing at Mountain Resort
An advanced skier was found dead in Utah on Tuesday morning after going missing while on a solo run the day before.
Devon O'Connell, 37, was skiing with a friend at Solitude Mountain Resort early Monday before he parted ways with the man and got on the ski lift for another run at about noon, according to Salt Lake City affiliate KSL-TV.
When the Cottonwood Heights man didn't return, his wife reported him missing around 6:30 p.m., KUTV reported.
Using drones, search-and-rescue teams worked through part of the night looking for him before postponing the search to the morning after weather conditions hindered the efforts, per KUTV.
Ski patrollers were later joined in their search by the Unified Police Department, Salt Lake County Sheriff's Search and Rescue and members of Brighton's ski patrol, reported Fox 13 Salt Lake City.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
KSL News/Youtube Utah skier tragedy site
RELATED: Utah Skier, 57, Found Dead After Being Buried Under Avalanche
O'Connell's body was discovered in an area with trees at about 8:20 a.m. Tuesday, Melody Cutler, a spokesperson for the UPD, told the outlet.
"We know that he scanned onto a ski lift at 12:03, and that's the last actual known location where he was," Cutler said. "He was found ... in a group of trees where it looked like he went off the run — maybe to ski in some fresh powder, we're not exactly sure."
The man was wearing a helmet at the time and was described by the UPD as an expert skier, multiple outlets report.
KSL News/Youtube Utah skier tragedy site
RELATED: 1 Skier Dead, 5 Rescued After Being Trapped in an Avalanche at Crystal Mountain in Wash.
The medical examiner's office is now set to determine O'Connell's cause of death, per Fox 13.
Meanwhile, in nearby Little Cottonwood Canyon on Tuesday, an injured man and his companion were rescued after being caught in an avalanche while backcountry skiing.
The risk for avalanche danger in the area is "considerable" currently, the Utah Avalanche Center told KUTV.
