Death of skier who fell into snow in Banff, Alta., raises a danger of snow sports

The death of a 47-year-old Toronto skier this past Saturday afternoon at a Banff ski resort has brought attention to a dangerous side of snow sports, even when being done on relatively easy, marked trails.

The skier involved in the weekend incident was located by first responders after she fell into deep snow near a green-level trail, according to Alberta RCMP Cpl. Troy Savinkoff. They tried to resuscitate her, but were unsuccessful.

The cause of the woman's death has not been confirmed, but one possibility is that she suffocated in the snow. Sunshine Village Ski Resort spokesperson Kendra Scurfield said she received a report about the incident indicating a soft snow immersion.

Snow immersion suffocation — or SIS — can happen when a skier or snowboarder falls into a tree well or into a pile of loose, deep snow and becomes immobilized and trapped, leading to suffocation.

And it can happen quickly.

“Much faster than you would think,” said Paul Baugher, director of the Northwest Avalanche Institute. He’s been studying SIS for about 25 years.

Baugher said he knows of at least five or six cases where it took just 10 to 12 minutes for the person to suffocate after going headfirst into snow.

And important to know, he said, is that this is not something that only happens in the backcountry.

“This is a ski-area phenomenon,” he said. “These [accidents] don't happen on groomed runs at ski areas. But they happen in the treed areas — and they don't just involve trees ... just deep snow is enough."

About 70 per cent of the time it involves falling into tree wells, but 30 per cent of the time, it’s just about deep powder, he said.

The risk of a tree well or SIS accident is greatly reduced just by staying on groomed runs, according to Powder Canada.

In the U.S., Baugher says there are an average 4.7 deaths every ski season from SIS. In 2018 alone, there were at least five deaths from falling into tree wells and suffocating in the Western U.S. and Canada.

How to avoid snow immersion

The most important thing, Baugher said, is to be aware of the risk of skiing in a lot of new fresh powder or near trees.

You're most likely to survive going headfirst into snow is if someone else sees it happen. Never ski alone, and remember your partner is not just there to have fun with you on the slopes.

“You have to keep your partner in sight,” Baugher said. “You have to maintain visual contact. If you lose contact with your partner, and your partner goes under, it's almost game over.”

He advises saving the numbers of local ski patrols on your phone, making sure you have cell coverage, and bringing a whistle. You may need it to alert someone else that you need help.

What to do if you see someone go into deep snow 

If your partner does go under, get to them as quickly as you can and start digging. Blow your whistle, call the local ski patrol, but get to them fast.

And while your instinct may be to try to grab hold of their legs or skis and try to pull them out, Baugher said, don’t even try.

“You can kind of picture where their head would be. Start digging,” he said. “Go with a tunnel directly for the airway. That's exactly where you're going. You're going for the head.”

What to do if you are hurtling toward deep snow

If you fall forward and you land inverted with your snowboard or skis attached to your boots, it’s almost impossible to self-rescue, Baugher said.

“Do whatever you can to stay out of the inverted position. Go flat, roll, go to the side, try to get away from where the tree well is.”

If you can’t avoid the trees, he said do whatever it takes to avoid going under. “Grab the tree as you get in. Grab branches, grab the trunk if you can. Do whatever you can to keep your head from going inverted.”

But if you do wind up going under, the first thing is to try to stay calm. That will help you to conserve air. Try to clear a space around your face so that you keep your mouth and nose clear of snow.

But the best tip is to try not to rely on the tips for how to unbury yourself at all, said Baugher.

“The tips don't work very well, is what I'm trying to say. So what you need to do is avoid having to use the tips about what you do when you're buried.”