The group was traveling with guides from a commercial heli-skiing operation, which escorts backcountry skiers via helicopter to the tops of mountains that are otherwise inaccessible.

On Thursday morning, Alaska State Troopers publicly identified the three missing persons caught in the avalanche as 39-year-old David Linder from Florida, 39-year-old Charles Eppard from Montana and 38-year-old Jeremy Leif from Minnesota.

Radio Mankato identified one of the skiers caught in the backcountry avalanche as David Linder, who was part of a heli-skiing group.

Alaska State Troopers say three skiers who had flown by helicopter to a remote mountain range were swept away by an avalanche and likely killed under the weight of dozens of feet of snow

Image via Facebook A radio host and his two buddies were tragically killed after an avalanche buried them under 100 feet of snow. The trio were heli-skiing in Alaska when the incident occurred. David Linder,

Officials at the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Center have confirmed that three skiers on a heli-skiing tour died in an avalanche near Girdwood, Alaska, southeast of Anchorage, this week. The avalanche occurred on March 4 at about 3:30 pm.

Dangerous avalanche conditions in the area persist, stalling recovery efforts and prompting warnings from forecasters.