A man buried under an avalanche said it felt like being trapped in a 'tub of concrete'

• A California ski resort was struck by an avalanche on Wednesday, killing a man.
• Jason Parker, 52, managed to survive despite being "entombed" in snow, he told NBC News.

A man who survived a deadly avalanche in Tahoe, California, has described his ordeal, saying it was like being "entombed" in snow.

Reno resident Jason Parker, 52, was swept up in the deluge during a visit to Palisades Tahoe — a resort beloved for its steep runs — with his fiancée, NBC News reported.

The pair started out with a successful run down KT-22, an expert-level track at the resort. But on their second run, they took another route down the slope. As Parker moved ahead of his fiancée, suddenly the snow hit with almost no warning.

Parker, an experienced skier, said he felt some "slough come by me," but didn't worry at that moment.

The avalanche struck at around 9.30 a.m. on Wednesday at Palisades Tahoe, spreading 10-foot-deep snow across a 450-foot-long area, according to Placer County Sheriff's Office.

Later that day, sheriffs announced the death of 66-year-old Point Reyes resident Kenneth Kidd.

Speaking to NBC, Parker described how he managed to escape with his life.

The rush of snow "swept me off my feet, threw me onto my back," he told the outlet.

At first, it felt like he was being pulled down under a slow-moving river, he said. He used his training and tried to stay above it — but then the snow reached a deep gulley, he told NBC News.

"That's when it accelerated," he said. As he was pulled at speed down the mountain head-first, he yelled to others to "watch me" so that he could be found once it stopped.

"That's when it just covered me up and there was nothing I could do," he said. "It was just, like, entombed me."

Once he had stopped, buried face down in the snow, Parker pushed a six-inch air hole in front of his face to give him some breathing room — but he knew time was short, the outlet reported.

Trapped and completely immobilized under four feet of snow, he told NBC that it was like being in a "tub of concrete."

Parker said he began to feel sleepy, and started to believe that "this is the way I'm going to go."

After about eight minutes he felt a probe hit his back, he told NBC News. "And I was like, oh, my God, they've got me."

"Once that probe hit me, I knew I was going to be OK," he said. "And that was, that was incredible. It's a feeling I'll never forget."

Parker escaped with only a minor injury to his knee.

More than 100 people from local agencies, as well as rescue volunteer groups, took part in the rescue efforts, Palisades Tahoe wrote in an Instagram post.

The post also offered condolences to Kidd's family, saying it was an "incredibly difficult" day for their community.