Skier Dies After Falling Into Pile of Fresh, Deep Snow

A weekend ski trip in Alberta’s Banff National Park ended in tragedy for a 47-year-old woman from Toronto. Sunshine Village Ski Resort says the woman was skiing Saturday afternoon on Banff Avenue, a beginner-level green run on the lower mountain, when she fell into a pocket of deep, freshly fallen snow just off the trail, according to CBC News. Another skier attempted to assist her before ski patrol arrived, but the effort was unsuccessful, the Winnipeg Sun reports.

Ski patrol responders performed CPR for nearly two hours on the woman, identified as Farah Merchant, but she could not be revived. Authorities say the incident may have involved deep snow immersion, a dangerous situation in which a skier becomes trapped in soft snow and can suffocate. Her body was taken to Calgary for an autopsy to determine the official cause of death, which police say does not appear suspicious, reports CTV News.

A spokesperson for Sunshine Village said the resort is deeply saddened by the incident and offered condolences to Merchant’s family. The spokesperson noted the death may have been caused by suffocation or cardiac arrest. The tragedy occurred during what the resort describes as its fourth-snowiest season on record.

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