March 19 — Three consecutive accidents occurred at ski resorts in California on Sunday, resulting in two deaths and one injury, with one of the deceased being of Chinese descent.
On March 18, at the Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort near Lake Tahoe, approximately 300 kilometers north of San Francisco, a 54-year-old Chinese man named Hu Yiwei (phonetic) from Gold River, Sacramento, tragically lost his life. Police in El Dorado County stated that the skier’s body was found in a deep snow pit formed by groundwater, and it remains unclear what caused him to fall into the pit.
On the same day, at China Peak Mountain Resort in Fresno, about 309 kilometers south of San Francisco, a skier fell headfirst into deep snow and never emerged. A resort spokesperson said the victim died of suffocation.
At Kirkwood Mountain Resort near Lake Tahoe, a skier was caught in a small avalanche and was hospitalized with injuries.
Last week, heavy snowfall blanketed multiple mountainous areas in California, attracting many skiers. Police and ski resort officials reminded skiers to always go with a partner to avoid being stranded in case of disaster.