• Rescue teams contending with dangerous conditions.
• Sheriff says avalanche danger was widely forecast.
• Avalanches claim average of 27 lives each winter in US.

At least eight skiers died in an avalanche in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, and a ninth is presumed dead, authorities said on Wednesday, making the disaster one of the deadliest single avalanches in US history.

Rescuers on skis were able to reach six survivors amid an intense winter storm that had dropped several feet of fresh snow on the high Sierra in recent days. One skier remains unaccounted for.

The avalanche – the length of a football field, according to authorities – struck in the Castle Peak area of Truckee, California, about 10 miles north of Lake Tahoe, around 11:30am Pacific time on Tuesday, engulfing a group of backcountry skiers who were completing a three-day guided excursion.

One of the rescued skiers is still being treated in a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Nevada County Sheriff Shannan Moon said at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

The survivors had taken refuge in a makeshift shelter, constructed partly from tarpaulin sheets, and communicated with rescuers via radio beacon and text messaging.

Two rescue teams, totalling about 50 members, were dispatched from the Boreal Mountain Ski Resort and Tahoe Donner’s Alder Creek Adventure Center and approached the avalanche zone from the south and north.

Extreme conditions for rescuers

The rescuers faced “extreme” conditions, Moon said, including blinding snow and gale-force winds. A team was able to use a snowcat vehicle to get within two miles of the survivors and then ski to the accident site.

The eight dead skiers were found with their beacons active, and their bodies will be recovered when weather permits, authorities said. One was married to a member of the search-and-rescue team.

The group of skiers had been finishing a three-day excursion with Blackbird Mountain Guides at the time of the avalanche. The tour group included four guides and 11 clients, who stayed at the Frog Lake Backcountry Huts located near Donner Summit, just northwest of Truckee, at about 7,500 feet elevation (2,300 meters).

In a typical winter, the mountain receives more than 400 inches of snow, making it one of the snowiest places in the western hemisphere.

Moon noted that forecasts widely predicted the storm and attendant avalanche danger and said her office is still talking with the guide company about its decision to take people out.

The Sierra Avalanche Center extended the avalanche warning it issued on Tuesday, saying a “great” danger might continue throughout the day on Wednesday.

Blackbird issued a statement on Tuesday saying it was working with authorities to support the rescue operation.

The company was founded in 2020 and operates in California, Washington state and British Columbia, as well as numerous popular skiing spots abroad, according to its website. The company provides guided ski trips, alpine climbing trips and avalanche education.

Avalanches have claimed an average of 27 lives each winter in the United States over the past decade, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, which had tallied six US avalanche fatalities so far this season before Tuesday’s disaster.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has ordered the release of a total of 3,296 prisoners on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan, in separate pardons announced by the country’s leadership.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan ordered the release of 1,440 inmates from correctional and penal institutions across the country.

He also pledged to settle their outstanding financial obligations resulting from their sentences, in a move aimed at giving them an opportunity to start a new life and easing the hardship on their families during Ramadan.

In Dubai, the emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who also serves as UAE Vice President and Prime Minister, ordered the release of 1,856 prisoners of various nationalities from Dubai’s correctional facilities.

Such pardons are traditionally announced in the UAE ahead of Ramadan and other significant occasions, offering selected inmates a chance to rebuild their lives.

An Indian university has courted controversy at the AI summit in Delhi after an official claimed that a Chinese-made robotic dog was its own invention.

The incident came to light after a professor from Galgotias University told state-run broadcaster DD News that the robot named “Orion” was “developed” at their Centre of Excellence. A video of her remarks went viral.

Online users later identified the machine as the Go2 model made by Chinese firm Unitree Robotics, which is commercially available starting at about 200,000 rupees ($2,200; £1,600).

In a statement on Wednesday, the university denied claiming it had built the robot and described the backlash as a “propaganda campaign”.

“We would like to clearly state that the robotic programming is part of our endeavour to make students learn AI programming and develop and deploy real world skills using globally available tools and resources, given developing AI talent is need of the hour,” the university said.

Neha Singh, the professor seen in the video, later told reporters her remarks had been misunderstood. “It might be that I could not convey well what I wanted to say, or you could not understand well what I wanted to say,” she said.

Social media users, however, accused the university of dishonesty.

Reports said that following the backlash, the university was asked to vacate its stall at the summit. Faculty members said they had received no official communication to do so.

But hours later, news agency Press Trust of India reported that electricity supply to the stall was cut off following the controversy.

A BBC reporter at the summit said the lights were turned off at the booth and no staff from the university were around.

The incident is being seen as an embarrassment for the organisers of the summit as the video had also been shared on IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw’s official X account. The post has since been deleted.

India’s IT Secretary S Krishnan said the controversy should not “overshadow” the work put in by other participants at the summit.

“What happened should not affect the way people present or exhibit their work at such events. The idea is not to use an opportunity like this to become something else or create unnecessary noise.

“It is essential that a proper code of conduct is followed. There are other countries and other participants involved as well,” he told reporters.

The India AI Impact Summit, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Bharat Mandapam on Monday, is being pitched by the government as a flagship gathering to position India as a global AI hub.

Delegates from more than 100 countries, including several heads of governments, are attending, alongside industry leaders such as Sundar Pichai of Google.

The five-day summit features policy discussions, startup showcases and closed-door meetings on AI governance, infrastructure and innovation.

However, its opening day was overshadowed by complaints of overcrowding, long queues and confusion at the venue, prompting organisers to extend exhibition hours and tighten entry management. They say arrangements have since improved.

BBC correspondent Vikas Pandey, who is at the summit, said the venue was “absolutely buzzing” on the third day, with thousands of people from different parts of India visiting stalls and soaking up the excitement. Officials say they hope the event and the conversations around it will help adoption of AI across the country.