A 32-year-old Vancouver skier
died after colliding with a tree on Whistler Mountain Sunday.
Earlier in the week, a
volunteer with the Whistler Adaptive Sports Program, 74-year-old Manning
“Manny” Norman, died following a collision with cornice debris.
Robert James Crumlin was pronounced dead at the
scene.
The accident occurred on the
lower half of Bear Paw on Whistler Mountain. Whistler Mountain Ski Patrol
dispatch received a 911 call at approximately 1:39 p.m. Sunday. Ski Patrol
responded immediately.
According to a statement from
Whistler Blackcomb, snow conditions at the time and place of the accident were
reported as hard and packed. Skies were clear and visibility unlimited. Local RCMP said speed was a contributing factor in the early afternoon mishap.
A coroner’s investigation is
underway.
Norman died Tuesday, March 7
while being transported by ambulance from the Whistler Health Care Centre to
Vancouver.
Earlier that day, at
approximately 11 a.m., Blackcomb Mountain Ski Patrol dispatch received a call
that a male had skied into cornice debris in the Showcase T-Bar area and
sustained a chest injury. Norman was conscious and alert when Ski Patrol
arrived a few minutes later.
A statement from Whistler
Blackcomb indicated an A.L.S. paramedic, two doctors and a ski patroller
attended to Norman to assess his condition. Norman suggested that he could ski
off the mountain but medical personnel insisted that he be tobogganed down and
transferred to the health care centre by ambulance.
Snow conditions at the time
and place of the accident were reported as soft-packed. Visibility was between
50 and 75 metres.