Man, 24, Missing in Avalanche : Weather: Friend from San Clemente digs self out, hikes for help. Mt. Baldy search for Costa Mesa snowboarder to continue today.

Rescue workers planned to resume the search at dawn today for an Orange County man who was swept away in an avalanche on Mt. Baldy on Tuesday while snowboarding with a friend.

Mike Pilotti, 24, of Costa Mesa and Larry Beard, 32, of San Clemente were snowboarding in Big Butch Canyon, an “out-of-bounds” area on the east side of Mt. Baldy, when the avalanche hit about 10:40 a.m., Sheriff’s Deputy Ken Owens said.

Beard was able to hide behind a tree, but Pilotti was caught in the wall of snow. When Beard looked up, Owens said, “his friend had disappeared.”

After digging out of the snow, Beard hiked two hours to the Snowcrest Lodge area to summon help. He was then taken to San Antonio Community Hospital where he was treated for a knee injury and broken ribs and released, said Sharon Kensinger, director of the emergency department.

San Bernardino sheriff’s deputies launched a search for Pilotti, with Beard guiding the way, but as the snow and rain grew stronger, authorities ordered their search helicopter back to base, Owens said. But avalanche experts said the area was so fragile that they ordered the helicopters out because the sound of the rotors could trigger another slide.

Rescue teams will “go back up in (this) morning in first light,” Sheriff’s Lt. Les Breeden said.

Pilotti’s family in Costa Mesa said they planned to travel to Mt. Baldy today.

Mt. Baldy Fire Chief Bill Stead said the area was clearly “out of bounds” for skiers.

“When you go beyond the sign that says ‘out of bounds,’ you’re in trouble,” Stead said. “Mother Nature just lets those things go occasionally. It’s very fragile up there. It’s ready to go. The conditions are ideal for an avalanche.”

Beard and his friend may have been at a disadvantage with their snowboards, once the avalanche began, Stead said.

“A skier can sometimes ski out of an avalanche faster than a snowboarder,” he said. “You have to go like hell to get out of the way of them,” by maneuvering to the side, rather than trying to outrun the slide.

In 1992, Stead said, an avalanche about a mile away buried two skiers, whose bodies were not recovered for several months.

A volunteer member of the search team who asked not to be identified said: “Even avalanche experts get caught in these things when they’re in the back country. It’s not an exact science.”

“When it snows, the wind blows the snow over the leeward side of the slope and it and piles up,” the volunteer said. “You can get a lot of snow built up there in a ‘pillow’ or ‘pocket’ that has a lot of weight to it, and it builds up stress.”

Then, after a rain and a freeze, an icy sheen is created on the surface of the slope, which is tempting to skiers. However, a break in the icy slope can then trigger an avalanche, he said.

Times staff writer Juli Fields contributed to this story.