13-year-old Montreal area girl dies after snow tunnel collapses

A 13-year-old girl has died after the snow tunnel she was playing in outside her home collapsed and buried her.

A 13-year-old girl who was rushed to hospital after she was believed to have been buried in a collapsed snow tunnel on Montreal’s South Shore has died, police confirmed Friday.

Châteauguay police told CTV News that the girl died from her injuries on Thursday in hospital.

Officers were called to the girl’s home on Astrale Street at 4 p.m. Tuesday, where they found the girl unconscious. She was taken to Sainte-Justine Hospital in critical condition.

The tragedy came after the Montreal region received more than 70 centimetres of snow during back-to-back storms over a four-day period.

The city’s mayor, Eric Allard, expressed his condolences to the family in a social media post on Friday morning.

“Sadly, I have been informed that the young girl who was hospitalized following an accident, possibly in a snow tunnel, has passed away. I would like to offer my sympathies to the family in this horrible situation,” he wrote. “There are no words to explain the pain the family must be going through right now.”

The incident prompted the city to issue a word of caution to residents about the dangers of playing in snow tunnels.

“Fun at first glance, but these games hide real risks, such as collapses,” the notice stated.

Doctors warn about snow-related risks

Following Tuesday’s incident, Montreal Children’s Hospital Trauma Centre Director Debbie Friedman said now is not the time to build snow forts or tunnels.

“Given the volume of snow that we have and given the density of the snow, these are not great conditions to do this activity,” she said in an interview earlier this week, adding that playing alone presents certain risks.

After southern Quebec was hit with significant snowfall recently, cities and health officials are urging residents to remember to play safe during the winter months.

Dr. Laurie Plotnick, emergency physician at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, said what happened in Châteauguay is quite rare but serves as a reminder that playing in the snow can present some risks.

“We do want to remind people that when there is a lot of snow, it is exciting to go out and play in the fresh snow, but snow can be heavy and unpredictable,” she told CTV News on Friday.

“Especially with all the snow clearing trucks, which are creating lots of high piles of snow, just be careful and play so that you’re always around the snow, but not in any way where snow can collapse on you.”

Her emergency room tends to see more cases of frostbite, as well as injuries like broken bones and concussions related to skiing, snowboarding and sledding after big snowfalls.

She is advising parents that when it comes to playing outside during winter, there are steps that can be taken to minimize injuries, like checking tobogganing hills for patches of ice, keeping a closer eye on younger children and giving them helmets.

“Enjoy the winter. It’s great to be outside and spend time with your family. Be together. Be vigilant, anticipate injuries,” she said.

“The activities are great, but many activities require some anticipatory guidance and prevention.”

More outdoor-related injuries expected: Santé Quebec

The majority of cases in the ER at the Montreal Children’s Hospital are flu-related, she added, but on Friday Santé Quebec said it is expecting to see more injuries related to outdoor activities.

“It’s certain that emergency departments see a lot of injuries and accidents related to winter sports during the spring break. We see a lot of concussions, fractures and frostbite,” Dr Mélanie Labrosse, a paediatric surgeon in charge of trauma at the CHU Sainte-Justine emergency department, told reporters at a press briefing on Friday.

Sliding sports also entail certain dangers. Collisions with trees or cars are frequent, shared Dr Labrosse. “We expect a lot of injuries. [...] We’re expecting something bigger than the other weeks of the winter,” Labrosse said.

The health agency told the press briefing that emergency rooms had reached their winter peak.

With files from The Canadian Press