Photo: KATU
Two people were killed in separate incidents at Mt. Bachelor on Friday.
At approximately 12:00 p.m., an adult male snowboarder was discovered in a tree well in the West Bowls, an experts-only area near the Northwest lift.
Ski patrol members arrived and performed CPR while transporting the snowboarder to the West Village base area. He was transferred to the care of local emergency response personnel, who pronounced him dead at 1:14 p.m.
At approximately 3:30 p.m. Friday, Mt. Bachelor ski patrol received a report of a missing adult female skier who had become separated from her friends.
Mt. Bachelor ski patrol launched a search with Deschutes County Search and Rescue (SAR) and after several hours of searching, crews located the missing skier at approximately 8:30 p.m. Friday evening in a tree well near the more-difficult White Bark run in the vicinity of the Cloudchaser lift. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Members of the Mt. Bachelor ski patrol and the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office are investigating both incidents.
The names of the people who were killed have not been released.
“Our entire mountain community is shocked and saddened,” said John McLeod, Mt. Bachelor’s president and general manager. “To have two unrelated incidents in the same day is unthinkable. We are heartbroken and our deepest condolences go out to the affected families and friends.”
Fatalities at ski areas resulting from falls into tree wells are uncommon, and for two unrelated incidents to occur in the same day at one ski area is exceptionally rare. Prior to Friday’s incidents, the last tree well fatality at Mt. Bachelor occurred in 2002.