A 34-year-old man from Seattle died Monday on Mount Bachelor in Oregon after he was found buried headfirst in a tree well.
Deschutes County 911 received an emergency text message at 3:04 p.m. reporting someone was trapped and had serious injuries on a section of steep terrain, the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office reported in a news release.
Deputies and rescue crews soon found a skier trapped in a tree well.
Deep holes can form around the base of a tree when snow piles up. They can be extremely difficult to escape, especially when buried headfirst.
First responders spent 15 to 20 minutes freeing the skier from the tree well before beginning CPR, the sheriff's office reported. But despite rescue efforts, the man died.
The sheriff's office identified Benjamin Shelkey, 34, of Seattle as the skier.
Shelkey's cause of death hasn't yet been determined, but the circumstances are "consistent with snow immersion suffocation," the sheriff's office news release reported.
"Tragedies like this remind us of the risks of outdoor recreation, and we encourage everyone to remain vigilant and take necessary precautions when venturing into deep snow conditions," Deschutes County Sheriff Kent van der Kamp said in a statement.
When recreating in dangerous snowy conditions, here are some safety tips:
Recognize dangerous conditions: During times of heavy snowfall, steep, ungroomed slopes through thick forests pose the most danger, although deep snow immersions have also occurred in open terrain and on the flats. Assume all trees have deep wells beneath them.
If you're heading for a tree well: Do everything you can to avoid going in headfirst. Grab tree branches. Deliberately fall before you get there. Roll to get your feet down or spread-eagle to stop the plunge. If you go in, protect your airway by making a pocket around your face. Don't struggle, and stay calm.
Practice good partnership: That means keeping visual and voice contact while in trees or ungroomed areas. Survival time once someone is buried is extremely short.
Be prepared and dig fast: If you're skiing ungroomed, treed areas, bring a shovel and a whistle. If you're a skier, don't wear pole straps. If your partner goes in, dig fast. Seconds count.
Materials from The Seattle Times archive were used in this report.
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