Two snowboarders triggered an avalanche in a closed area at Sunshine Village Monday (Feb. 14) – and RCMP have now laid charges.
The two 25-year-old men were fined $287 each for trespassing. If they contest the fine, they’ll appear in court May 5.
Ski hill officials say the men triggering an avalanche after ducking into an area known as Wild West that has been closed all season due to avalanche hazard.
The class 1.5 to class 2 avalanche was triggered shortly after 2 p.m. Luckily, the two weren’t swept away because they managed to keep above the slide.
“They are very fortunate not to have hurt themselves. There are very good reasons why these areas are closed,” said Doug Firby, Sunshine’s associate director of communications.
Sunshine Village has been embroiled in a high profile labour dispute with four long-term employees, including former mountain and risk manager Chris Chevalier, suing the ski resort for wrongful dismissal.
Sunshine has since hired a new mountain manager to oversee mountain operations and slope safety. Al Matheson rejoins the organization Feb. 25.
None of former employees’ allegations have been proven in court, but the four allege they lost their jobs over an incident involving the ski hill owner’s son who was found in a closed area.
Firby said in both cases, entering closed areas goes against the alpine responsibility code, but he said the incident involving Ralph Scurfield’s son did not occur in an avalanche area.
“It was not an avalanche area; it was a trail that is not yet opened so they were not in any physical danger,” he said. “I don’t know all the details of the investigation in December.”
In Monday afternoon’s incident, Firby said the two snowboarders had to go under distinctly marked ropes indicating the area was closed due to avalanche risk.
He said a staff member at gondola operations spotted the slide and reported it at 2:19 p.m. Ski patrollers immediately swept the area to ensure no one else was involved.
“We closed Goat’s Eye Mountain for the rest of the afternoon to ensure we could continue with a proper safety investigation, and part of the ski out was also closed to ensure full access to crew,” said Firby.
Meanwhile, just two days earlier on Saturday (Feb. 12), two male cross-country skiers in their mid-20s were lucky to escape with their lives after being buried in a massive avalanche at Emerald Lake.
One skier was buried upside down with snow covering his head, while the other was buried up to his waist when a 3.5 category slide came down as they crossed the natural avalanche path while following the trail.
Other skiers in the area were able to dig them out, both were equipped with proper avalanche safety equipment. They both suffered minor injuries.
Later that evening, another massive avalanche came crashing down upon the popular B.C. lake, breaking up the ice on the lake for the first time in memory.
Emerald Lake Lodge’s executive chef and his son, along with some hotel guests standing on the bridge around 11 p.m., described the roar of the class 4 avalanche as “spectacular and deafening”.
“We’re damn lucky it came down at night because earlier in the day there were at least 40 some odd cross-country skiers on the lake,” said Allison Fraser, the general manager of Emerald Lake Lodge.
“It was absolutely spectacular. It’s like there’s icebergs all over the lake. There’s a natural chute there, but this is the first time it broke up the lake that anyone can remember.”
Marc Ledwidge, Parks Canada’s visitor safety manager for Banff, Yoho and Kootenay, said this year is not an average winter and urged outdoor enthusiasts to pay careful attention to the conditions.
“This is what is being referred to as the 30-year winter. There’s some big, big features. We’re seeing avalanches in places we haven’t seen them in 30 years,” he said.
“There’s lots of good skiing, but during these avalanche cycles you definitely have to keep your head up because some big events are happening throughout the cycles.”
