On February 6, 1999, a team of three biologists, led by Professor Jonathan Hoffman, investigate a series of supposed wildlife killings in a wooded area near a small New York (state) town. One of the biologists, Bianca, suspects that the killings may have something to do with a recent earthquake. When Hoffman and the other biologist, Gabriel, go off to investigate the wildlife disappearances, they discover the corpse of a mutilated deer. Upon returning to the campsite, they find that Bianca has discovered a hole in the ground. From this, the group determines that a prehistoric creature that has been frozen for thousands of years was freed by the earthquake, and has been killing the wildlife. The creature appears and kills both Gabriel and Bianca, leaving Hoffman to deduce that it is a "snow shark", before it bites him.