Sledder Buried and rescued today

[SavageCanuck]

Yes condolances to family as he was only 34 and an expectant father.
Rescued snowmobiler dies in hospital - Vernon and North Okanagan News - Castanet.net

 

[rknight111]

Condolences to his family and friends for the loss of this man. Thoughts are with his pregnant wife and future child.

 

[moyiesledhead]

www.chasingsnowflakes.com is the blog posted for this. The person known as Harry is someone I know but wasn't the guy buried. read the blog, explains how the AVI training kicked in and reactions. Last part is disturbing as the victim was in a coma.

The training needs to kick in before it gets to the point of search and recovery. The mistake has already been made by then.

 

[Chasingflakes]

The training needs to kick in before it gets to the point of search and recovery. The mistake has already been made by then.

Just to be clear that the individual who was caught was not part of the authors ( me) party but I would have to agree with you.

 

[teeroy]

Just to be clear that the individual who was caught was not part of the authors ( me) party but I would have to agree with you.

did the avy run to where you were sitting, marked "C" on the image in your blog?

terrible situation, I can't imagine having to go through it. thanks for writing about it

 

[Chasingflakes]

did the avy run to where you were sitting, marked "C" on the image in your blog?

terrible situation, I can't imagine having to go through it. thanks for writing about it

I wanted to write it like it was happening. I hope the panic came through because its the only way to describe it. The debris ended just beyond the outline. I have been backcountry skiing for about 5 years and I am confident where we rode was perfectly safe that day. Just glad we were near and could respond. The toby creek guys administered the first aid and i can't stress enough that if it wasn;t for them , he would have died. AST courses are great but get some first aid to go with it, no matter how fast you get your friend out, if he isn;t breathing and you don't know what do to your still ****ed.

 

[GT500john]

Pretty sad. Feel for the family and everybody keep your heads up

 

[drew562]

Kind of reinforces things for me. Saw my first fatality when my friends dad was buried when we were 9 years old, we saw it happen and we say them trying to revive him. Later on in my 20's while part time pro patrolling assisted with recovery of two friends that were sledding in rig lease area by Castle. Those are images you never forget.
Been a big pussy ever since when in the backcountry..besides education and experience that will go a long way to staying safe.

5 yrs ago Myself and 5 friends dug a close friend out from a avi. We CPR'ed for over 3 hours. It Was terrible to go through that. I was a daredevil and had respect for the hills but no fear. I now play in the trees lots. I too feel like a "pussy" when i wont do huge vert decents, I miss crazy climbs and long pulls but there not worth it. Long side hills ect are what I call trigger searching. As far as quiting sledding thats not a option. I was back within a week sledding. My condolences to the family and friends.

 

[Dannyturbo]

Here's the report

Despite a heroic and miraculous recovery of a snowmobiler buried 15-feet in an avalanche on Saturday, RCMP confirm the Vernon man has succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
Castanet has learned that it was 34-year-old AJ Cleary who died Sunday after being rescued Saturday, spending nearly two-hours buried beneath the snow.
Clearly was a new dad to be and leaves behind his wife who is carrying their first child.
Bob Horkoff, owner of Keefer Lake Wilderness Resort, chatted with Castanet Sunday morning sharing the story of the miraculous rescue before it was announced that AJ had passed.

Photo: Facebook - AJ Cleary


Saturday afternoon at around 3 p.m. a snowmobile pulled up in front of the Keefer Lake Wilderness Resort that Horkoff owns. He says it was a survivor of the slide requesting their help.
“One of the fellows pulled in, we know him, he is a regular guest here, and he informed us that there had been a major avalanche and one of their party was still buried,” said Horkoff.
There was a group of five experienced men sledding in the hills that day. Three of them stopped to wait for the other two to catch up when they were hit suddenly by the slide.
Horkoff says two of them managed to stay upright and self-rescue because they were able to deploy their air bags. The third disappeared underneath the snow.
His team immediately radioed for help from the local heliski company, Kingfisher, who sent their guide and a helicopter with a full trauma kit to the site for rescue.
Horkoff says the slide was about 10 kilometers east of the resort.
“We flew over the scene and it looked like a clear cut. What looked like 150 - 250 meters in height had released along about a 500-foot plane,” explained Horkoff.
“We immediately got to probing the area. Some of the group had been there for an hour already and thought they had a faint beacon signal. They had already dug down six feet at one location at the tree line.”
With that information and the new assistance on scene they were able to locate AJ buried 15-feet below the surface, at the deepest point a beacon signal could reach.
“He was just at the very extreme range of the beacon’s ability to detect and was out of the range of some of the actual probes we were using, but we managed to get him.”
After over an hour locating him it took about 45-minutes to get him out of the slide, Horkoff says at first he appeared deceased when they pulled him from the snow.
“The medi-ski guide and one of the other fellows there was a emergency room nurse from Vernon so between the two of the them they worked on him the whole time,” said Horkoff.
AJ was then transported via helicopter to waiting ambulance personnel who were able to revive him on route and take him to Kelowna General Hospital in serious condition.
“It was quite a scene, you know everyone remained calm, this a group of experienced guys that have been here for quite a few years doing the same thing.”
Horkoff says the group had no idea the avalanche would happen. He says they were at the valley bottom on a logging road waiting for the rest of their group to catch up when all of the sudden it released from above unexpectedly.
“Fortunately everybody knew what they were doing, everyone was equipped with the right equipment, and had beacons, so it happened as good as it could have happened under the situation. It is a testament to being prepared,” added Horkoff.
Vernon Search and Rescue were called for assistance but due to their response time Horkoff does not believe they would have been able to get there in time.
“Luckily we had the resources here and we were able to contact and get everybody together in time to get out there.”
Horkoff adds that the heliski company had been out that day in the area but had shut down because of adverse weather conditions.
“It was a pretty amazing and almost miraculous event that we were able to get him out and get him back. AJ was still buried when we got there,” said Horkoff, not yet knowing that AJ had passed away.
RCMP say the case has been turned over to the B.C. Coroners Service.
Snowmobiling in the backcountry can be a risky sport, even for those that were prepared like this group.
For those heading into the backcountry the rating across the southern portion of the province remains between ‘3- Considerable (Dangerous avalanche conditions. Careful snowpack evaluation, cautious route finding and conservative decision making essential)’ and 4 - High (Very dangerous avalanche conditions. Travel in avalanche terrain not recommended). You can check current conditions atwww.avalanche.ca

 

[bobsledder]

Here's the report

Despite a heroic and miraculous recovery of a snowmobiler buried 15-feet in an avalanche on Saturday, RCMP confirm the Vernon man has succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
Castanet has learned that it was 34-year-old AJ Cleary who died Sunday after being rescued Saturday, spending nearly two-hours buried beneath the snow.
Clearly was a new dad to be and leaves behind his wife who is carrying their first child.
Bob Horkoff, owner of Keefer Lake Wilderness Resort, chatted with Castanet Sunday morning sharing the story of the miraculous rescue before it was announced that AJ had passed.
http://www.castanet.net/content/2014/3/untitled_13_p2637222.jpgPhoto: Facebook - AJ Cleary


Saturday afternoon at around 3 p.m. a snowmobile pulled up in front of the Keefer Lake Wilderness Resort that Horkoff owns. He says it was a survivor of the slide requesting their help.
“One of the fellows pulled in, we know him, he is a regular guest here, and he informed us that there had been a major avalanche and one of their party was still buried,” said Horkoff.
There was a group of five experienced men sledding in the hills that day. Three of them stopped to wait for the other two to catch up when they were hit suddenly by the slide.
Horkoff says two of them managed to stay upright and self-rescue because they were able to deploy their air bags. The third disappeared underneath the snow.
His team immediately radioed for help from the local heliski company, Kingfisher, who sent their guide and a helicopter with a full trauma kit to the site for rescue.
Horkoff says the slide was about 10 kilometers east of the resort.
“We flew over the scene and it looked like a clear cut. What looked like 150 - 250 meters in height had released along about a 500-foot plane,” explained Horkoff.
“We immediately got to probing the area. Some of the group had been there for an hour already and thought they had a faint beacon signal. They had already dug down six feet at one location at the tree line.”
With that information and the new assistance on scene they were able to locate AJ buried 15-feet below the surface, at the deepest point a beacon signal could reach.
“He was just at the very extreme range of the beacon’s ability to detect and was out of the range of some of the actual probes we were using, but we managed to get him.”
After over an hour locating him it took about 45-minutes to get him out of the slide, Horkoff says at first he appeared deceased when they pulled him from the snow.
“The medi-ski guide and one of the other fellows there was a emergency room nurse from Vernon so between the two of the them they worked on him the whole time,” said Horkoff.
AJ was then transported via helicopter to waiting ambulance personnel who were able to revive him on route and take him to Kelowna General Hospital in serious condition.
“It was quite a scene, you know everyone remained calm, this a group of experienced guys that have been here for quite a few years doing the same thing.”
Horkoff says the group had no idea the avalanche would happen. He says they were at the valley bottom on a logging road waiting for the rest of their group to catch up when all of the sudden it released from above unexpectedly.
“Fortunately everybody knew what they were doing, everyone was equipped with the right equipment, and had beacons, so it happened as good as it could have happened under the situation. It is a testament to being prepared,” added Horkoff.
Vernon Search and Rescue were called for assistance but due to their response time Horkoff does not believe they would have been able to get there in time.
“Luckily we had the resources here and we were able to contact and get everybody together in time to get out there.”
Horkoff adds that the heliski company had been out that day in the area but had shut down because of adverse weather conditions.
“It was a pretty amazing and almost miraculous event that we were able to get him out and get him back. AJ was still buried when we got there,” said Horkoff, not yet knowing that AJ had passed away.
RCMP say the case has been turned over to the B.C. Coroners Service.
Snowmobiling in the backcountry can be a risky sport, even for those that were prepared like this group.
For those heading into the backcountry the rating across the southern portion of the province remains between ‘3- Considerable (Dangerous avalanche conditions. Careful snowpack evaluation, cautious route finding and conservative decision making essential)’ and 4 - High (Very dangerous avalanche conditions. Travel in avalanche terrain not recommended). You can check current conditions atwww.avalanche.ca

This reallly sucks. His friends knew what they were doing and really tried. Really sad for all.

 

[SUMMIT TREE]

Thoughts going out to this guys friends and family. This is a very sad event and more so because of his young family. RIP dude.

 

[Modman]

Sad to hear that he did not survive, but doesn't sound like much more could have been done. Some great points in that article and learnings for others, so that this man did not die in vain.

Thanks to Keefer Lake Wilderness Resort and Kingfisher Heliski for responding.

Thoughts and prayers to his wife and baby. Can't imagine that.

 

[CUSO]

Condolences to the family and all that know him.

 

[TylerG]

Condolences to family and friends of this individual.

Kudo's to the rescuers for doing all they could to keep him alive.

God Speed Fellow Snowmobiler.

 

[dogsmack]

The training needs to kick in before it gets to the point of search and recovery. The mistake has already been made by then.

I was referring to the guy that rescued the victim and his reference to things HE learnt in AVI training. The blog is from the rescuer not the victim. At the risk of being rude rubbing the comments about the training needs to kick in before the point of search of rescue being very valid is however considering all things uncalled for.

 

[DooDoo]

RIP AJ. The crazy part of this whole thing is the spot it had happened. It was not a spot you would be worried about sliding. I was there with him and the other guys involved the previous weekend and guys where playing in the cut block with no issues. It just shows that you can never take any terrain for granted. Even if you don't think it could slide, it possibly can. Play safe out there guys.

 

[Summitric]

Deepest sympathy to family and friends and godbless the pregnant wife...... Thoughts are with you

 

[DooDoo]

https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/8iPO7/ab/32zxQb

Here is a link if anyone is interested in donating to AJ Cleary Memorial Fund. This fund is to assist Laura during her time of need, to handle expenses, as well as strengthen the future of their unborn child.

 

[catmando]

What a heartbreaker..........Condolences to the family!

 

[snopro]

Condolences to the family.