Missing snowboarder in B.C. found, lifted to safety, no injuries
December 19, 2012 - 2:01 AM
WEST VANCOUVER, B.C. - Search crews in West Vancouver have been able to rescue a stranded snowboarder who had been missing for two days.
North Shore Search and Rescue says the man was found on Tuesday afternoon but couldn't immediately be rescued because he was in a hard-to-access gully near the Sea-to-Sky highway.
With the help of a Cormorant helicopter from 442 Squadron in Comox, B.C., the man was winched off Black Mountain and flown to Vancouver.
Thirty-three-year-old Sebastien Boucher is in stable condition with no injuries and is now spending time with family.
He got lost on Sunday morning in an out-of-bounds area near Cypress Bowl in West Vancouver, a popular ski destination for residents of the Lower Mainland.
Search efforts had been hampered by poor weather and the risk of avalanches.
The rescue came at a critical time because Environment Canada had issued a snowfall warning for the region, with the temperature expected to drop to the freezing point near sea level. (CKNW/News1130)
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012