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CNN Live Today
Deadly Avalanche in Canadian Mountains
Aired January 21, 2003 - 11:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we move on to Canada, where an adventure turned tragic for a group of skiers. Seven people died when they were swept away by an avalanche in the remote Selkirk (ph) Mountains.
CNN's Lilian Kim joins us from Revelstoke, British Columbia with more details on this.
Lilian, it's amazing that anybody even survived this avalanche.
LILIAN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, we will be getting more details on that deadly avalanche later today. That's when the Royal Canadian Mounted Police will be holding a news conference here at their office. The RCMP is the agency that has been leading the search-and-rescue effort. The seven people killed in that avalanche include three Americans, two from California, one from Colorado. They were part of a group of 21 back country skiers. One other was buried in snow. Three more were partially covered, but they are all said to be in good condition.
The group was skiing down the Durrand (ph) Glacier of the Selkirk (ph) Mountains when the snow broke loose. Prior to this accident, there have been 10 avalanche-related deaths in British Columbia this season.
The accident site is described as very remote and very wild, elevation about 6,000 feet.
We've been told all of the skiers were trained in basic avalanche rescue and were equipped with avalanche beacons, devices that emit a radio signal that helps pinpoint someone who is buried.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. RANDY BROWN, MOUNTED POLICE: They're able to, if they're caught under snow, they set off a transmitting signal, and with a receiver you're able to locate them. And that's from what I understand, talking to one of the investigators who did provide some information, is that with the emitters going off, they were very, very successful in locating all the victims very, very quickly. Unfortunately, they were buried under such a significant amount of snow and rescue efforts, I mean, with what shovels they did have and skis, it just was too late.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KIM: The group was accompanied by several guides from a reputable local ski touring company. The warning level yesterday was at considerable, the third highest of the fire-tier avalanche-warning system.
Reporting live from British Columbia, Canada, I'm Lilian Kim.
Karen -- Carol, back to you.
LIN: That's OK, Lillian.
It was their third highest warning, but the tour company itself even says that that's pretty average, those conditions, that you could have considerable chance of an avalanche and still feel that you could go out relatively safely and ski in these remote areas.
KIM: Right, it wasn't at extreme, which is the highest of the five-tier system. There's extreme, and there's high and there's considerable, and these skiers entered the back country knowing that risk. There is still a great deal of risk when the warning system is at considerable. It was a chance that they were willing to take. It's part of the risk that one takes when they travel through the back country.
LIN: Yes, those fast changing weather conditions contribute to all of that. Thank you very much, Lilian Kim, reporting live up in British Columbia.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 21, 2003 - 11:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we move on to Canada, where an adventure turned tragic for a group of skiers. Seven people died when they were swept away by an avalanche in the remote Selkirk (ph) Mountains.
CNN's Lilian Kim joins us from Revelstoke, British Columbia with more details on this.
Lilian, it's amazing that anybody even survived this avalanche.
LILIAN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, we will be getting more details on that deadly avalanche later today. That's when the Royal Canadian Mounted Police will be holding a news conference here at their office. The RCMP is the agency that has been leading the search-and-rescue effort. The seven people killed in that avalanche include three Americans, two from California, one from Colorado. They were part of a group of 21 back country skiers. One other was buried in snow. Three more were partially covered, but they are all said to be in good condition.
The group was skiing down the Durrand (ph) Glacier of the Selkirk (ph) Mountains when the snow broke loose. Prior to this accident, there have been 10 avalanche-related deaths in British Columbia this season.
The accident site is described as very remote and very wild, elevation about 6,000 feet.
We've been told all of the skiers were trained in basic avalanche rescue and were equipped with avalanche beacons, devices that emit a radio signal that helps pinpoint someone who is buried.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. RANDY BROWN, MOUNTED POLICE: They're able to, if they're caught under snow, they set off a transmitting signal, and with a receiver you're able to locate them. And that's from what I understand, talking to one of the investigators who did provide some information, is that with the emitters going off, they were very, very successful in locating all the victims very, very quickly. Unfortunately, they were buried under such a significant amount of snow and rescue efforts, I mean, with what shovels they did have and skis, it just was too late.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KIM: The group was accompanied by several guides from a reputable local ski touring company. The warning level yesterday was at considerable, the third highest of the fire-tier avalanche-warning system.
Reporting live from British Columbia, Canada, I'm Lilian Kim.
Karen -- Carol, back to you.
LIN: That's OK, Lillian.
It was their third highest warning, but the tour company itself even says that that's pretty average, those conditions, that you could have considerable chance of an avalanche and still feel that you could go out relatively safely and ski in these remote areas.
KIM: Right, it wasn't at extreme, which is the highest of the five-tier system. There's extreme, and there's high and there's considerable, and these skiers entered the back country knowing that risk. There is still a great deal of risk when the warning system is at considerable. It was a chance that they were willing to take. It's part of the risk that one takes when they travel through the back country.
LIN: Yes, those fast changing weather conditions contribute to all of that. Thank you very much, Lilian Kim, reporting live up in British Columbia.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
