LAKE LOUISE – A 21-year-old Red Deer man was killed in an avalanche on Saturday (April 22) afternoon in Lake Louise in Banff National Park.
Police said three individuals were involved in the deadly incident in an out-of-bounds area at the Lake Louise Ski Resort.
“One individual, who’s a 21-year-old male, unfortunately, was deceased,” said RCMP Cpl. Troy Savinkoff. “The other two individuals (a 21-year-old man from Lacombe and a 19-year-old man from Rocky Mountain House), I believe, suffered minor, if any injuries at all.”
The Rocky Rams, a junior B hockey team, identified Cale Stecyk as the deceased.
The Rocky Mountain House club said Stecyk played the past three seasons with the team and was a great leader on and off the ice.
“Cale was someone that everyone wanted to be around and play with, his infectious smile and presence will be missed by many,” said the team on social media. “The Rams have set up counselling for all members of the organization affected by this tragedy, should they like to utilize it.”
Banff National Park is under a “dangerous avalanche conditions” warning, according to Avalanche Canada.
As of Wednesday (April 26), Avalanche Canada rates the risk of avalanche in the national park as considerable at or above treeline. Forecasts are calling for high risk at below treeline and above Friday (April 28).
Saturday’s size 3 avalanche was “skier-triggered” in the Lake Louise West Bowl area and reported to be 200 metres wide, 550 m long and with a crown depth of 40-50 cm.
The fatal avalanche hit two of the three skiers in the party, completely burying one, which prompted emergency personnel to react quickly once being made aware by a member of the public.
The partially buried skier was rescued by Lake Louise ski patrol. A probe line was used to locate the fully buried individual.
“Once excavated from the debris, Parks Canada and Alpine Helicopters evacuated the patient via helicopter long line and transferred them to Banff EMS and STARS air ambulance at a staging area in the ski hill parking lot,” said a Parks Canada statement. “Despite extensive lifesaving efforts the individual was pronounced deceased.”
Parks Canada and Lake Louise Ski Resort extended condolences to all those affected by this event.
Major safety factors noted in the aftermath were of the dangers of entering closed terrain and that the skiers involved had not been equipped with avalanche safety equipment.
“This spring, avalanche conditions continue to be challenging with several deep persistent layers remaining in the snowpack that are vulnerable to human triggering,” said a Parks Canada statement. “These layers have consistently been producing large, dangerous avalanches and this is expected to continue as temperatures begin to warm. Visitors are reminded to obey all closures at ski hills.”
STAR-1 (Calgary) has been dispatched for a scene call emergency in the Lake Louise, AB area.
— STARS (@STARSambulance) April 22, 2023
STARS air ambulance, Alpine Helicopters, EMS, Parks Canada safety specialists and a search dog, Lake Louise ski patrol and RCMP responded to the incident.
This year has been among the worst for avalanche fatalities in the past 20 years, with 14 people having been killed in avalanches. Of those, 13 have been in British Columbia with the Saturday fatality being the first avalanche-related death in Alberta in 2023.
The Outlook will update the article when more information becomes available.
