Searchers recover 2nd body after rockfall near Canada's Banff National Park hiking trail

Washington Post

10 hours ago

CALGARY, Alberta — Search teams located a second body Friday following a massive rockfall off a hiking trail in Canada's Banff National Park.
The University of Alberta confirmed one of the two people killed in the rockfall in Banff National Park was retired educator Jutta Hinrichs, who was a leader in the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine.
Parks Canada officials say she was 70 and lived in Calgary.
The slide happened Thursday afternoon north of Lake Louise on the Icefields Parkway, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) northwest of Calgary. It is also about 137 kilometers (85 miles) from the site of the Group of Seven summit held in Kananaskis, Alberta, this week.
Three others were taken to the hospital and were reported in stable condition.
Officials said no one else has been reported missing and there are no unidentified vehicles at the trailhead.
The route rus along the edges of Bow Lake and is considered a moderate challenge for hikers and is used by tourists and day-trippers, including families. It's a region with limited cellular service.
Niclas Brundell, a trail guide who lives in nearby Canmore, said he was hiking in the area with his wife Thursday when they both started seeing concerning signs of rocks tumbling and boulders the size of tires starting to fall.
'This was unimaginable to me, that such a big piece of mountain would fall off,' he said. As rocks started rolling at the top of the waterfall, he said, they didn't hit anyone, but he and his wife wondered why nobody seemed to be reacting.
'Then all of a sudden, I hear the start of another rockfall, and I turn around, and the whole mountainside is coming off.'
He said the slab seemed about 50 meters (164 feet) wide and 20 meters (60 feet) deep, and he and his wife started sprinting.
When he turned around, he could see a group of between 15 and 30 people at the waterfall disappear under a cloud of dust.
'The only place I've ever seen something similar is like watching videos from 9-11, when you see New York being cast over,' he said.
He said there was a roar, 'and I just didn't see them anymore.'
Brundell said when they got far enough to feel safe, he sent a satellite message to Parks Canada, while his wife ran to a nearby lodge to call for help.
He said it's a popular trail because it's considered relatively easy, and on any given summer day there are 15 people or more hiking the trail.