One killed in B.C. avalanche near Revelstoke as warning extended to Thursday

REVELSTOKE, B.C. — An avalanche in British Columbia’s Interior has killed a snow biker near Revelstoke as warnings of persisting danger are extended by the forecaster. 

Avalanche Canada says the fatal avalanche happened Sunday at Sale Mountain north of Revelstoke, when one of the riders in a group was caught in the slide.

The agency says those in the group and others nearby quickly pulled the man from the snow, but even as they were performing CPR, a second avalanche came down and burned some snowmobiles. 

Revelstoke RCMP confirmed that a 58-year-old man from Alberta was taken to hospital by helicopter but died of his injuries.

Avalanche Canada says both slides were caused by snow sitting on weak layers formed in early February, which prompted the forecaster to extend its warning of danger through to Thursday. 

The agency is urging backcountry users to make conservative terrain choices for vast swaths of British Columbia’s southwestern and northwestern mountains and in the Rocky Mountain regions extending into Alberta. 

Avalanche Canada says there were a number of avalanches in the B.C. Interior over the weekend triggered either naturally or by accident, including the fatal incident near Revelstoke.

“Although the new snow is appealing, making conservative terrain choices will be an important strategy for all backcountry users over the next few days,” the forecaster says in its updated statement. 

The warning area covers the coastal mountains from Whistler to Hope and Princeton, the North Coast area from Kitimat and Terrace to the region east of the Alaska Panhandle, and mountain ranges, including the Rockies, Chetwynd in the north and the Okanagan in the west to the U.S. border and into parts of Alberta.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 4, 2024.

The Canadian Press