The ski patrol director at Wolf Creek Ski Area was killed Monday in an avalanche.

Scott Kay, who had worked at the ski area for 16 years, was doing avalanche-control work when he became caught in a slide, said Bob Brammer, a close friend.

Brammer called him “one of the best people that I know.”

Kay, a 41-year-old former Marine, was a husband and the father of two boys, ages 6 and 8, said his wife, Chantelle Kay.

“He was an absolutely amazing dad and an unbelievable husband,” she said.

The ski area issued a news release extolling the dangerous work he did to protect others.

“Wolf Creek’s management and all its employees wish to express our deepest regrets at this loss of a wonderful man and close friend,” the release said. “Our sympathy and condolences go out to his wife and two children.”

Efforts to reach resort management were unsuccessful Monday.

A recorded phone message at the ski area said Wolf Creek was closed Monday “due to the fatality of a staff member.”

The news release from the ski area said, “To honor him, Wolf Creek will remain closed for the remainder of Monday, Nov. 22, 2010, and, also to honor him, will reopen on Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2010, at 8:30 a.m.”

Kay was a Marine veteran who served in the first Gulf War, Brammer said.

When the accident happened, he was working with professional ski patrollers who took every step to free him and resuscitate him, Brammer said. A medical helicopter was dispatched out of Farmington, he said.

Kay was skiing a routine avalanche-control route when he was caught in a slide, according to a news release from the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office.

When Kay did not respond to radio contact, fellow ski patrollers responded to find him, the release said. They located him with avalanche beacons and probes. They dug him out of about 4 feet of snow.

Life-saving measures were started and continued for about 1½ hours. He was pronounced dead at 12:15 p.m.

Kay enjoyed skiing, water skiing and dirt biking. He owned a business and did stucco and plaster work during the summer, his wife said.

“He was full of life, exuberant, fun-loving, hard- working and dedicated,” Mrs. Kay said.

The death is the first avalanche-related fatality of the season in Colorado, according to the Avalanche Information Center in Boulder.

Snow and strong winds have created a “high” avalanche danger across much of the state’s high country, the Avalanche Center said Monday.

A high rating means both natural and human-triggered avalanches are likely.

“A second storm will increase the avalanche danger Tuesday night,” said Ethan Greene, director of the Avalanche Center, in a news release.

Backcountry travelers should be equipped with a shovel, probe pole and rescue beacon.

Wolf Creek was reporting 18 inches of new snow in the last 48 hours. The ski area opened with limited terrain Oct. 30.

shane@durangoherald.com