In the early morning of March 7, 1911, a massive avalanche roared down the east slope of Copper Mountain and wiped out the town of Jordan. Eight people were killed, including Robert Mason, the chief engineer of the power plant, and only his wife and dog survived. The snow slide was the worst of several in and around Mono County during the winter of 1910-11. Rescuers from Bodie and Lee Vining had to travel by snowshoes or skis because all roads were impassable, and contact with other communities was cut off when telephone lines went down. It took several days to locate and identify all the victims, and most were later buried in a nearby cemetery. The disaster also became the death knell for a town that had been slowly recovering from the 1903 closure of its local mines, businesses, and post office, and today remnants of foundations, miscellaneous debris, and eight headstones remain.