A hiker says he was shocked to realize he was standing near a ledge where five people had just fallen to their deaths in the mountains north of Vancouver.
Alastair Ferries says he had just passed a man on Saturday who mentioned his five friends were ahead of him on Mount Harvey, about 35 kilometres north of Vancouver.
But Ferries says no one was on the summit when he arrived and all he saw were some tracks leading to the ledge, which looked like it had broken off.
The 62-year-old North Vancouver resident says that’s when he knew the entire group had fallen over.
WATCH: Snowshoeing tragedy cornice safety
He says that when the other hiker joined him, he looked astonished that his friends weren’t there and then he knew immediately what had happened.
Ferries says he apologized to the man for what he was dealing with and went to his vehicle to call for help.
Rescue crews have now recovered the bodies of the five snowshoers. They have not been identified by the B.C. Coroners Service at this time. However, family members have identified one hiker as 53-year-old Yong Jun Sohn from North Vancouver.
WATCH: Avalanche Canada says this has not been a typical snow year for B.C.’s south coast. With much of the snow coming in February and March and the weather staying colder on the mountain than normal there have likely been thousands of avalanches that no one has seen. But it’s this time of year when it’s getting warmer down below that the danger actually increases higher up the mountains. Lynn Colliar has the story.
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