An Alberta man was killed in an avalanche while travelling with a group of four friends in the backcountry near Revelstoke over the weekend.
Revelstoke RCMP Staff Sgt. Chris Dodds says the man was snow-biking in the Sale Mountain area, about 25 kilometres north of the B.C. town, around 1 p.m. on Sunday when he was buried by the avalanche.
Dodds says the victim is believed to be from the Calgary area.
The four other snow-bikers who were travelling with the man managed to dig him out of the snow.
According to Avalanche Canada, a group of snowmobilers who were riding in the area also stopped to help and while they were working to assist the victim and perform CPR, a second avalanche occurred, burying some of their snowmobiles.
The two groups called for help via satellite phone. Revelstoke Search and Rescue crews responded and transported the victim to Queen Victoria Hospital in Revelstoke by helicopter, where he was pronounced dead. There were no other injuries reported.
Dodds says avalanche conditions in the area were high at the time of the accident and remain high as of Monday afternoon. He recommends anyone heading into the backcountry carry the proper safety gear and check avalanche.ca for the latest on avalanche conditions in their area.
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