Chairlift Tragedy at Crystal Mountain B.C. Leaves Four Injured, Two Critical

Crystal Mountain, British Columbia – This popular ski resort operates two chairlifts and features 30 well-groomed runs making it an ideal place for beginners to get snowboarding and skiing lessons. However, tragedy struck at 11:00AM PT yesterday when a vacant chair on chairlift began swinging wildly and struck a ski tower sending a rippling effect that caused other chairs to plunge 6 meters (~20 ft.). In total, four people were injured in the freak accident, two of whom are in critical condition.

Mark Morin, General Manager at the Crystal Springs Ski Resort, confirmed the sequence of events, but some say the drop may have been as much as 7 meters (~23 feet). According to Morin, once the first chair hit the ski tower the tragic events were set in motion. The accident caused the chair lift to halt operation with 15 patrons still aboard their chairs. According to Morin, they were safely evacuated with no additional injuries occurring. As far as the extent of the injuries to the four victims, Morin was aware that one patron suffered broken ribs, but was not familiar with the condition of the other three victims.

Ben Middelsteadt, spokesman for Ambulance Services, was able to confirm that one victim had to be life flighted via helicopter to a nearby hospital. Another victim was transported aboard a special ambulance equipped with a life support system. Crystal Springs Ski Resort, originally called Last Mountain Ski Resort, was founded in 1965 and has never experienced such a tragedy. The Safety Authority of British Columbia has announced that it will be conducting a formal investigation into the cause of this chairlift accident. For the time being, the ski operation has been shut down out of safety concerns. No one has stated what caused the first chair to swing wildly as it did.

Source:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/crystal-mountain-b-c-chairlift-falls-4-injured-2-critical-1.2556492