Small avalanche killed 3 hikers at Colchuck Peak final report says

SEATTLE – The Colchuck Peak avalanche that killed three climbers last month was “relatively small,” the Northwest Avalanche Center found in its final accident report reviewing the incident. But up there, on such steep terrain, even a small avalanche can be deadly. On Feb. 19, a group of six climbers was climbing a steep, narrow gully – called a couloir – on the peak near Leavenworth, Washington, when an avalanche crashed down the mountainside. Three climbers died of traumatic injuries: Seong Cho, 54, of Connecticut; Jeannie Lee, 60, of New York; and Yun Park, 66, of New Jersey. The slide…