A man who slipped and fell between 100 and 150 metres while trying to help a companion during a hike on one of the tallest mountains in Metro Vancouver’s North Shore has died of his injuries.
The B.C. Coroners Service has confirmed that the man, whose identity has not been released, died in hospital on Sunday, the day after the fall.
It happened on Brunswick Mountain near Lions Bay, B.C., with rescuers saying the trouble began when a woman in a group of 14 hikers slipped and fell about 20 metres.
The man then tried to climb down to assist her, but Lions Bay Search and Rescue says he also slipped and fell farther down the steep, snowy terrain, coming to rest just above a waterfall.
The rescue team says the man was in critical condition and the woman was stable as crews extracted them Saturday, using rope systems and two helicopters.
The coroners’ service has released no further details, saying its investigation is ongoing.
Lions Bay Search and Rescue manager Maria Masiar told CBC News on the weekend that the man was wedged in a snow moat just above a steep rocky drop.
A third man from the group made it down the slope to wait with him for rescue and was unharmed.
Two helicopters and 19 volunteers from both Lions Bay SAR and North Shore Rescue responded to the call, which they received around 1:40 p.m. Saturday afternoon, flying to where the hikers were located and lifting them out.
“It was a very technical rescue, they had to set up rope systems and rappel into his location,” Masiar said. The team consisted of rope technicians, mountain specialists, helicopter teams and medics.
Masiar noted that backcountry conditions in the North Shore and Sea-to-Sky region can be tricky and added the snowpack on local mountains has been extremely saturated after days of heavy rain.
