This happened not by an avalanche, but in a resort slope on Dec 10 Monday 11:50am.
http://www.nikkansports.com/general/f-gn-tp0-20071210-293920.html
http://www.hokkaido-np.co.jp/news/society/65126.html
A skier found a snowboarder burying his face in snow of a truck of Furano ski resort, Hokkaido.
The truck is in Kita-no-Mine area, supposed not to be groomed. The snowboarder was dead by suffocation after being hospitalized. He is a company employee(26) living in Itabashi-ku, Tokyo, and came to the resort on Dec 9 with his some friends.

SC

Terrible.

but, his head was just stuck in the snow and thats how he suffocated? That is a really odd accident dont you think? doenst mention anything about a tree well, just deep powder.

Please bring snorkels when going to Hokkaido, they could save your life. Poor bloke that sucks.

I still can't really figure it out from reading the preliminary reports - the news really says he was on resort, on piste, and he was stuck head down. I guess it is possible, but on piste would be rather difficult. I've heard of people augering in head-first and needing help getting out, but that was off corince drops or rock drops on the BC - not on the groomers...

It says on the un-groomed run. Ive gotten caught once in a position I could never have gotten out of without help. Left hooked up face down a 35 degree slope. If I didnt have a mate with me I dont know what the result wouldve been. He may have inhaled snow on the fall and then choked on in before he could right himself.

This is very sad - made worse by the probability that he would have been fine if he had a partner.



Link below is not a bad resource for Non-Avalanche Related Snow Immersion Deaths

http://www.treewelldeepsnowsafety.com/index.html

thanks Bellavista, that was a good read.

Very strange occurence.
Sounds like an unfortunate freak accident.
I guess Furano may review their un-groomed policy as a result.
I would have thought that somebody is more likely to hit a tree than suffocate in heaps of snow on-piste.

On my first outing of the season, I fell into tree wells 3 times. I was hiking on my own and not riding and sunk head-up. Once I was stuck up to shoulder levels. Had to take the pack off, use it as buoyancy device to get out. Was annoying but felt in control the whole time. If had been upside down, then would have been a different story I guess.

Ironic thing is how strict patrol is with off-piste...theyre up there with 47/Goryu

yeah CB, never been there but heard on another thread about the furano patrol.
Strange how the seemingly strictest places end-up with the bad accidents (furano this year, and the guy hugging the tree at 47 last year).

it does suck serre. Thats another resort I have no interest in going to cuz of Nazi patrol. Im pretty sure thats where the TGR crew (on Anomaly vid) got kicked out of but only Seiki, Brian, and Neil know for sure. What a sweet job those three have eh? TGR and pro photographer - Neil's photos are sick

I hope, for the sake of the industry, many of the Nazi places calm down some...their policies dont make sense sometimes.

these guys are funny. you would think the resort would be happy of the publicity but instead they kick the TGR crew out.
only in J land.