Jan. 10 update: Skier rescued from Mount Seymour triggered avalanche
Rescuers on the North Shore are working to reach an injured skier who was caught in an avalanche on Mount Seymour Tuesday.
The slide occurred shortly after noon in an area near the Seymour Alpine Trail on the southeast side of 1st Pump Peak, North Shore Rescue said.
The skier was pushed several metres down the slope into a wooded area, NSR's Peter Haig told CTV News.
Haig said the skier suffered a broken femur after colliding with a tree.
"The ski patrol actually went out and in fact got there first," Haig said, though the skier was in the backcountry of the provincial park and not at the ski resort.
The skier wasn't out of bounds, but was in an area not covered by ski patrol.
A rescue helicopter was brought in to help, but was grounded by thick fog that settled over the area. Instead, trained rescuers and two doctors went to the skier's location on foot, supplies in hand.
The skier was then loaded onto a stretcher to be moved across the steep terrain.
"We need to get him down to the helicopter…. And then when they've got him on board they hope to be able to punch up through and be able to land him in a cloudless area," Haig said.
He said the message rescue crews wanted to get out in light of the incident was to be careful.
"There are avalanches out there. You need to look at the avalanche report before you go into the backcountry. It's serious stuff out there."
