Airbag credited with saving man in Logan avalanche

LOGAN, Utah (AP) - The Utah Avalanche Center says a man who survived an avalanche in the Logan area was likely saved by an airbag he was wearing.

Officials at the center say the unidentified snowmobiler was buried to the tip of his helmet after the Wednesday afternoon avalanche near Tony's Grove. Other people with him pulled him out from the snow.

The airbag is similar to the one that professional skier Elyse Saugstad credits for saving her life in a Sunday avalanche in Washington. Three other skiers died in the slide.

Wearers can deploy the airbag when a slide begins. When the device inflates, the wearer becomes lighter and floats toward the top of the snow rather than becoming buried underneath

The air bags range from about $600 to $1000.

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