Skier dies from snow immersion suffocation at Mt. Bachelor
A 58-year-old Bend man died of snow immersion suffocation while skiing at Mt. Bachelor Ski Area on Tuesday, according to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office.
Robert Douglas Harrington, 58, was found unresponsive at around 2 p.m. in the West Bowl ski area and attempts at resuscitation were unsuccessful, officials said.
Officials said a person began performing life-saving techniques on Harrington where he was found. Harrington was transported via snowmobile to the West Village Patrol room where he was pronounced deceased at 3:12 p.m., Mount Bachelor said in a statement.
Harrington was an avid skier and was wearing a helmet at the time of the incident, officials said. They said he initially accessed the Northwest Express lift and was discovered unresponsive approximately 30 minutes later.
“The entire Mt. Bachelor team sends their deepest condolences and thoughts to the family and friends of the guest,” Bachelor spokeswoman Lauren Burke said.
An examination found Harrington was suffering from the effects of snow immersion suffocation. While officials weren’t clear about what caused the accident, snow immersion suffocation often occurs “when a skier or snowboarder falls, often headfirst, into a tree well or deep loose snow and becomes immobilized and trapped under the snow and suffocates,” according to DeepSnowSafety.org.
All Oregon ski areas have received multiple feet of snow during the past few days and week, which has made the threat of deep snow immersion a greater threat.
Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 15 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. Urness is the author of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors.