A second person has died after a heli-skiing group was caught in an avalanche in the backcountry of B.C.'s Kootenays on Wednesday.
The commercially-guided group of four clients and a guide was in the Bonnington Mountain range near Blewett when the slide hit at around 10 a.m.
The guide and one skier were able to rescue themselves in the aftermath and dig out the other skiers, according to RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk. One man could not be saved and another skier was unresponsive and had to be rushed to hospital in critical condition. She died of her injuries later in the afternoon.
The guide and remaining members of the group were taken to Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital in Trail and Kootenay Lake Hospital in Nelson to be treated for minor injuries, according to BC Ambulance.
Mounties and the BC Coroners Service are investigating. The skiing group was with Nelson-based Snowwater Heli Skiing.
