Body of ski instructor who disappeared at Sugar Bowl is found

The search for Carson May, a 23-year-old ski instructor at Sugar Bowl Resort, has been suspended after five days of searching in an avalanche-prone area. The search for Carson May, a 23-year-old ski instructor at Sugar Bowl Resort, has been suspended after five days of searching in an avalanche-prone area. Photo: Courtesy Of PCSO Photo: Courtesy Of PCSO Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Body of ski instructor who disappeared at Sugar Bowl is found 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

The body of a missing Placer Counter ski instructor was found buried under 5 feet of snow Monday, six weeks after he disappeared from Sugar Bowl Ski Resort.

The body of Carson May, 23, was found by search and rescue teams near the place where his cell phone last pinged on January 15, near the backside of a mountain. A telephone company was able to trace the signal of May’s phone but rescue workers turned up nothing after searching the area intensely for four days. Snowy weather and the threat of avalanches thwarted their search efforts.

May had gone skiing on the afternoon of January 15 but never met his friend to get a ride home, according to the Placer County Sheriff’s office. His effects were found in a locker on the resort grounds.

Crews from the Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue team and the El Dorado County Search and Rescue dog teams found May’s body Monday while training near their original search area, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post.

“Our condolences to the May family and our thanks go to all of the dozens of searchers who continued to search for Carson,” the post said.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan