in an avalanche on Tuesday. The search for a final missing skier continues but that person is presumed dead, Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said at a news conference on Wednesday. Officials said one of the deceased was the spouse of someone on one of the search-and-rescue teams, making continued rescue efforts "challenging emotionally". Fifteen skiers were reported missing on Tuesday after a "football-field" sized avalanche came barrelling down in the Castle Peak area around 11:30 local time (19:30 GMT). Six have been rescued.

"I want to offer my condolences to the family in this very trying time," Placer County Sheriff Wayne Woo said on Wednesday. The bodies of the eight dead skiers were still trapped in the snow and could not yet be recovered due to "pretty horrific" conditions, officials said.

Since the avalanche, another 3ft (90cm) of snow has fallen on the area, Tahoe National Forest supervisor Chris Feutrier said. "The hazard remains high," he said. Once the bodies are recovered, they will be transported to the Placer County morgue. Families of the deceased have been notified. Authorities have not yet released any of their names. Officials say the victims are seven women and two men. Sugar Bowl Academy, a ski school in Placer County, California, said multiple members of its community had died in the avalanche. "Emergency responders are still working to recover all of the victims and are not at this time sharing the personal details of the victims and the survivors out of respect for the families affected," the academy said. (BBC)