B.C. heli-ski company says snowboarder died in fall in a tree well

FILE — Diamond Peaks Heli-skiing Adventures Guides and customers watch from the landing zone near the summit as a helicopter flies away for more skiers in the backcountry near Powder Mountain, Utah, Feb. 12, 2003. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-The Standard Examiner, Robert Johnson

GOLDEN, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA — A British Columbia helicopter-ski company says that a snowboarder has died in the Kootenay region after falling in to a tree well.

Great Canadian Heli-Skiing, based in Golden, B.C., says in a statement the person was a guest of their company and died on Saturday in the northern Selkirk Mountains in the Kootenay region.

When someone falls into the soft, deep snow around a tree, the risk of suffocation can be high.

The company says it is working with the BC Coroner’s Service and other authorities as they look into the death.

HeliCat Canada says in a statement that its support team has been activated for Great Canadian Heli-Skiing, and the company is also working with the Coroner’s Service and the RCMP in the investigation.

The industry group says its members operate under “some of the highest industry safety standards in the world,” but there are risks to any backcountry activity, including helicopter-skiing.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 16, 2026.