British Columbia

Snowmobiler dies after avalanche in Shuswap area of B.C.

1 person killed, two others escape injury after slide 90 km northeast of Kamloops

Two others escape injury after slide 90 km northeast of Kamloops

One person was killed after being caught in an avalanche Sunday in the popular Crowfoot mountain snowmobile area in B.C.'s Shuswap. (Crowfoot Mountain Snowmobile Club)

The BC Coroners Service says one person is dead after being caught in an avalanche in the Shuswap area of the province.

According to the service it happened just after 11:30 a.m. PT about 90 kilometres northeast of Kamloops.

John Schutt with Shuswap Search and Rescue says three people were snowmobiling in the popular Crowfoot Mountain area when the avalanche happened. The victim was buried while no one else was injured.

"We have a helicopter that was on scene and picked up three avalanche technicians and they were brought to the site," he said. 

"A scene assessment was done and the site was cleared and then the technicians went in and unfortunately had to recover a body."

Schutt says RCMP and the Coroners Service have taken over the investigation of the death.

Second incident

It's the region's second such incident within the past week.

Last Tuesday, the body of a 34-year-old man was found in an avalanche zone near Sicamous, B.C., after crews picked up a signal from his personal-location device.

He had left two days earlier on a solo backcountry trip and was known to go sledding for multiple days at a time.

"I would caution people that avalanche conditions are quite dangerous around here right now," Schutt said. "People need to be wary of that."