Avalanche claims Whistler man On March 26, at approximately 2 p.m., an avalanche occurred in the back country of Powder Mountain in the Grizzly Lake area, trapping one male snowboarder and burying another. The trapped snowboarder, who was buried up his chest, dug himself out and located the other boarder using his avalanche transceiver. A pair of snowmobilers that were in the area rushed to the scene, calling the incident in to Whistler Search and Rescue. They helped to dig out the buried snowboarder and performed CPR until Search and Rescue arrived with a physician, who continued with life support until the victim was pronounced dead. The victim has been identified as 28-year-old Darren Proctor, a Whistler resident and experienced backcountry boarder. On March 19, an avalanche claimed the life of 38-year-old Eric Larrat Smith, a Pemberton resident and experienced backcountry guide, while he was guiding a group from Hawaii in the Wasp Creek drainage area north of Pemberton.
