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American Morning
Interview With Mayor of Revelstoke, British Columbia
Aired January 21, 2003 - 07:08 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Tragedy striking the mountains of western Canada, seven skiers killed yesterday, when they were buried by an avalanche there. The tragedy happened near Revelstoke, British Columbia.
And for more on the reaction to what happened yesterday and what's happening today, the mayor, Mark McKee, is with us now.
Sir, the conditions yesterday, were they right for an avalanche when these skiers headed up that mountain?
MAYOR MARK MCKEE, REVELSTOKE, B.C.: Yes, that's right, Bill. They were. We had -- the conditions were considered considerable by the Canadian Avalanche Association, which is their median warning. It's not their high-end by any means.
HEMMER: What is the reputation, sir, of the company that took these skiers there?
MCKEE: As far as I know, they are high-quality, professional, very meticulous, and like all of the back-country outfitters in our area, their primary concern is with safety.
HEMMER: Oftentimes dynamite is brought up into these areas of the mountains, trying to trigger the potential for an avalanche before it happens and takes the lives of human beings, as we have seen yesterday. Was any dynamite used this past week there, sir?
MCKEE: I don't believe so. I think you'll find that shooting down avalanches mostly happens on the quarter of the Trans-Canada highway.
HEMMER: Is your decision now to stop the heli skiing, as it's known, or continue?
MCKEE: No, I have no problem with the industry continuing. And I think you should clarify that this was a ski tour operation and not a heli ski operation. But I think that the real question is, is that how do we raise the awareness of the Canadian Avalanche Association? And how do we get more funding for the Canadian Avalanche Association, so that they can do more research as to what causes avalanches and be able to pinpoint avalanches more accurately, and therefore making the back country safer for everyone?
HEMMER: You made two points there. Money is the second issue, but the first issue, how do you go about that, making sure that things are safer in the future? MCKEE: Well, people have to know that there is an inherent risk going into the back country, and what we need is we need more research and more information, so that tragedies such as this can be avoided in the future.
HEMMER: How is the injured doing today and recovering?
MCKEE: I'm not sure. I'm hearing that the injuries were minor on that one person that was injured.
HEMMER: Well, that's good news there for that individual. Mark McKee, the mayor in Revelstoke, British Columbia. Thank you for your time, sir -- best of luck going forward after this from yesterday.
MCKEE: Thank you.
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 - 07:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Tragedy striking the mountains of western Canada, seven skiers killed yesterday, when they were buried by an avalanche there. The tragedy happened near Revelstoke, British Columbia.
And for more on the reaction to what happened yesterday and what's happening today, the mayor, Mark McKee, is with us now.
Sir, the conditions yesterday, were they right for an avalanche when these skiers headed up that mountain?
MAYOR MARK MCKEE, REVELSTOKE, B.C.: Yes, that's right, Bill. They were. We had -- the conditions were considered considerable by the Canadian Avalanche Association, which is their median warning. It's not their high-end by any means.
HEMMER: What is the reputation, sir, of the company that took these skiers there?
MCKEE: As far as I know, they are high-quality, professional, very meticulous, and like all of the back-country outfitters in our area, their primary concern is with safety.
HEMMER: Oftentimes dynamite is brought up into these areas of the mountains, trying to trigger the potential for an avalanche before it happens and takes the lives of human beings, as we have seen yesterday. Was any dynamite used this past week there, sir?
MCKEE: I don't believe so. I think you'll find that shooting down avalanches mostly happens on the quarter of the Trans-Canada highway.
HEMMER: Is your decision now to stop the heli skiing, as it's known, or continue?
MCKEE: No, I have no problem with the industry continuing. And I think you should clarify that this was a ski tour operation and not a heli ski operation. But I think that the real question is, is that how do we raise the awareness of the Canadian Avalanche Association? And how do we get more funding for the Canadian Avalanche Association, so that they can do more research as to what causes avalanches and be able to pinpoint avalanches more accurately, and therefore making the back country safer for everyone?
HEMMER: You made two points there. Money is the second issue, but the first issue, how do you go about that, making sure that things are safer in the future? MCKEE: Well, people have to know that there is an inherent risk going into the back country, and what we need is we need more research and more information, so that tragedies such as this can be avoided in the future.
HEMMER: How is the injured doing today and recovering?
MCKEE: I'm not sure. I'm hearing that the injuries were minor on that one person that was injured.
HEMMER: Well, that's good news there for that individual. Mark McKee, the mayor in Revelstoke, British Columbia. Thank you for your time, sir -- best of luck going forward after this from yesterday.
MCKEE: Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
