Avalanche victims' bodies recovered; Rescuers dig eight men from the snow.Byline: By ED JAMES Ed James (born Edward Stirk on 23 March 1976) is a radio DJ for 100.7 Heart FM, and currently hosts the breakfast show with Sarah Jane Mee on weekdays and Hellon Wheels on Sundays. THE bodies of eight snowmobile riders were found yesterday after they were swept away by avalanches in western Canada
Western Canada, commonly referred to as the West . They were found as searchers ploughed through avalanche debris near Fernie in Elk Valley Elk Valley is a valley in southeastern British Columbia that runs via the basin of the Elk River from the southeastern Alberta border near Kananaskis to the Rocky Mountain Trench. , British Columbia. Eleven snowmobile riders were hit by back-to-back avalanches on Sunday. Eight were buried but three from the group clawed through the snow and reached safety. Search efforts, which involved several dozen rescuers and volunteers as well as search dogs, had been delayed by the threat of more avalanches. Rescuers who rushed to the steep, rocky, bowl-like area originally discovered seven bodies buried deep beneath the hard-packed surface. The deepest was found under 11 feet of snow. Three were found almost immediately because they were wearing avalanche transceivers which send out electronic signals. The first avalanche buried a group of seven riders on Sunday afternoon, while theywere resting at the foot of a hill, said David Wilks, mayor of Sparwood, home to all 11 men. "It appears a cornice cornice (kôr`nĭs), molded or decorated projection that forms the crowning feature at the top of a building wall or other architectural element; specifically, the uppermost of the three principal members of the classic entablature, hence by let loose - an overhang on the top of the mountain - and buried them," he said. Another group of four snowmobile riders heard their shouts, hurried over and started digging, but were hit by a second avalanche. Two men dug themselves out and then pulled a third man free. Mr Wilks, who spoke to one of the survivors, said he was told they were buried twice and were fortunate enough to be able to dig themselves out about 20 minutes after the second avalanche hit. "They're very distraught that theyweren't able to stay and try and find or help their buddies, but ... one of them was injured and they felt there was an imminent risk of another avalanche coming down," said Wilks. "They had lost their gloves, they had lost everything so they were starting to dig by hand." The three men had minor injuries. Mr Wilks said all 11 men knew each other in the small coal-mining town of 4,000, and somewere related. Theywere skilled outdoorsmen Outdoorsmen are men who enjoy hunting, fishing, and camping out in the woods. Typically, they live in the northern United States or Canada. Stereotypically, they are flannel wearing, beard toting men like Paul Bunyan or the Brawny paper towel mascot. and many had families - two wives gave birth to their first children just a few months ago. Police later recovered the eighth and final body from the avalanches. CAPTION(S): Members of a search and rescue team board a helicopter in Fernie, Canada yesterday Picture: JONATHAN HAYWARD |
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