Thursday, March 28, 2024
ADVT 
National

Two dead, two hurt in latest B.C. avalanches

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 24 Jan, 2023 01:46 PM
  • Two dead, two hurt in latest B.C. avalanches

VANCOUVER - Two American businessmen have been killed in an avalanche in British Columbia, lifting the deadly season's toll to five, as forecasters warn of large and dangerous slides occurring without the usual signs of danger.

Pennsylvania-based Kinsley Construction announced on its website on Tuesday that brothers Jonathan and Timothy Kinsley were killed while on a skiing trip in British Columbia, leaving the company "deeply heartbroken."

RCMP said earlier that two heli-skiers had died Monday near Mount McCrae southeast of Revelstoke, in backcountry near an area known as "Chocolate Bunnies."

Heli-skiing operator CMH Nomads said in a statement on Tuesday that two guests and a guide were caughtin the avalanche.

CMH president Rob Rohn said both guests were fully buried and were located by their transceivers.

Both were unresponsive when they were pulled from the snow and were later pronounced dead in hospital, he said.

The guide was transferred by ambulance to Kelowna General Hospital.

Revelstoke RCMP detachment commander Sgt. Chris Dodds said the guide involved remains in hospital in serious condition.

Kinsley Construction, based in York, Pa., said the Kinsley brothers would be "immensely missed."

"Our entire Kinsley family is still processing this heartbreaking news of their deaths," said the statement, which identified Jonathan Kinsley as an executive of Kinsley Enterprises and Timothy Kinsley as president of Kinsley Properties.

The latest deaths come just days after a snowmobiler died after being caught in a slide south of Valemount, B.C. Two Nelson Police Service officers were buried by snow Jan. 9 while skiing near Kaslo, B.C.

Const. Wade Tittemore, 43, died in the slide, while his co-worker, Const. Mathieu Nolet, died from his injuries days later in hospital.

Rohn said in the statement that the thousands of guests who ski with them each winter are like family.

"It is impossible to put into words the sorrow that we feel and the sadness that is shared by our guests, their families and all of our staff."

An investigation into the latest deaths is being co-ordinated by the B.C. coroner and the RCMP.

B.C. Emergency Health Services said Tuesday it was called following a separate avalanche near Cherryville east of Vernon, B.C., on Monday where one person was taken to hospital.

Experts have warned that this season's snowpack across much of the province is particularly unstable with a weak layer of snow crystals near the bottom that was buried in late November.

Sarah Taylor with Avalanche Canada said in a statement on Tuesday that it’s important to know that a "dangerous snowpack structure" exists in the B.C. Interior that can produce large, human-triggered avalanches.

"We urge backcountry users to exercise caution and make conservative, low-consequence choices if they decide to travel in avalanche terrain," she said.

Taylor said backcountry users should always check the avalanche forecast, have essential rescue gear and the training to use it.

Avalanche Canada forecast supervisor Ryan Buhler said in a news release issued by the B.C. government that the snowpack was "highly unusual and unpredictable."

"The complication with this snowpack setup is that the layers are deep enough that we are less likely to see clues of instability, like nearby avalanche activity, ‘whumpfing’ or cracking snow,” Buhler said.

“However, despite the lack of obvious clues, there is serious potential for large, human-triggered avalanches. We urge backcountry users to exercise caution and make conservative, low-consequence choices if they decide to travel in avalanche terrain."

The statement says that in the past 10 years, about three-quarters of all Canadian avalanche fatalities occurred in B.C.

Avalanche Canada has said the dangerous conditions this year are similar to those of 2003, when 29 people died in avalanches in Western Canada.

MORE National ARTICLES

Abbotsford Police investigate Saturday night shooting

Abbotsford Police investigate Saturday night shooting
Upon arrival, officers located a male victim in his twenties. The man sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The initial investigation suggests that this incident was not random.

Abbotsford Police investigate Saturday night shooting

Man dies following a single-car collision in East Vancouver Sunday night

Man dies following a single-car collision in East Vancouver Sunday night
The 65-year-old driver was heading west near Nootka Street and East 6 Avenue, when the Chevrolet Malibu he was driving suddenly veered off the road and struck a pole at about 7:35 p.m. The driver went into medical distress and died after being taken to hospital.

Man dies following a single-car collision in East Vancouver Sunday night

Federal ministers begin three-day cabinet retreat

Federal ministers begin three-day cabinet retreat
Trudeau is fresh off a week of cross-country travel focused on Canada's push to expand its battery and electric-vehicle industries, part of a broader goal to get more competitive on clean technology. Senior Liberals are expected to use the retreat to hammer out political and policy priorities for the months ahead, keeping in mind their confidence-and-supply deal with the NDP.    

Federal ministers begin three-day cabinet retreat

Canada inspires U.S. refugee settlement program

Canada inspires U.S. refugee settlement program
The U.S. describes the program, which will allow ordinary Americans to privately sponsor refugees, as the boldest innovation in refugee resettlement in four decades. They also acknowledge that it borrows heavily from Canada, where citizens have been able to privately help resettle refugees since the 1970s.    

Canada inspires U.S. refugee settlement program

Trudeau questions awarding of ArriveCan contract

Trudeau questions awarding of ArriveCan contract
At a news conference in Toronto, Trudeau says he's asked the clerk of the Privy Council to look at the government's procurement practices to make sure they are getting good value for money. The government mandated the use of the ArriveCan app during the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to screen travellers crossing the border into the country.

Trudeau questions awarding of ArriveCan contract

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers tweaks offer for IAA

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers tweaks offer for IAA
The Vancouver-based company also says it plans to pay a special one-time dividend of US$1.08 per share to its own shareholders, contingent on the deal closing. Ritchie Bros. is now offering US$12.80 per share in cash and 0.5252 of a Ritchie Bros. share for each IAA share, making the offer worth about US$44.40 per share based on the company's share price Friday.

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers tweaks offer for IAA