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USA Today
14-03-2025
- USA Today
Snowboarder dies after falling from ski chairlift at Red Lodge Mountain in Montana
Snowboarder dies after falling from ski chairlift at Red Lodge Mountain in Montana A snowboarder at a southern Montana ski resort was killed Monday after falling from a chair lift, according to a social media post from the ski resort where it happened. 'Yesterday was an unfortunate day at Red Lodge Mountain as a guest was injured as the result of a chair lift incident,' the resort shared on Facebook Tuesday morning, adding that the guest was on the Triple Chair. 'Our thoughts and prayers are with the guest and his friends and family, and all guests and employees impacted by this incident.' Loved ones and Carbon County Sheriff Josh McQuillan identified the man as 37-year-old Jeffrey Zinne. He died after a fall from the Triple Chair at Red Lodge Mountain, Sheriff McQuillan said Friday, adding that the accident remains under investigation. According to KTVQ, the coroner's office said his cause of death was accidental blunt force injury. He was life-flighted to a hospital in Billings, where he died on Wednesday, according to Esther Jensen, a GoFundMe organizer raising funds for his family. Chairlift was shut down following man's death He was pronounced dead early Wednesday morning, KTVQ reported. The resort shut down the Triple Chair after the accident, according to the company's statement. '(The Triple Chair) will reopen only when we can ensure the continued safe operation of the lift,' Red Lodge Mountain said in its statement this week. The resort said in its statement that safety is a 'top priority' and the company has daily, weekly, monthly, and annual safety measures in place to make sure its guests are safe. Neither the coroner nor Red Lodge Mountain immediately responded to USA TODAY's requests for comment Friday morning. Tragic accident: 5 dead, including 2 children, after 17-vehicle crash in Austin; several others injured Meteorologist says there were strong winds in the area the day man died USA TODAY spoke with Peter Matos, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Billings Friday morning. While the National Weather Service doesn't have a weather observation site at Red Lodge Mountain, there are some close by, Matos said. One site is the Timbercrest site, Matos said. Around 11:15 a.m. on Monday, the Timbercrest site recorded wind gusts up to 50 miles-per-hour, coming in from the west. At 12:15 p.m. that day, the site recorded wind gusts around 52 miles-per-hour. Citing local reports, Matos said Zinne fell around noon. 'Those winds, they can make it over onto the other side of the mountain,' Matos said to USA TODAY on Friday. 'Red Lodge is known for having strong downslope winds out of the southwest. We know that it was pretty windy across the entire area that day.' A sweep of Red Lodge Mountain's Facebook page shows that facility managers have previously shut down lifts due to strong winds and maintenance. For example, a January 2021 post reads in part: 'Due to winds of 49+MPH at the top of Triple Chair, all lifts are currently on hold.' 'Love you, Dada guy': Remembering Jeffrey Zinne In the GoFundMe description, organizers said Zinne's death was a 'tragic accident.' 'This unexpected loss has left his family, friends, and all who knew him heartbroken and in disbelief,' Jensen, the organizer, wrote. 'Jeff was a devoted husband to his loving wife, Meghan, and a caring father to his 2-year-old son. His passion for life, infectious laughter, and kind-hearted nature touched everyone around him.' According to Jensen, he put others before himself and was president of Montana Air Cartage. The company offers local shipping services and has been in business since the late 1980s, according to their website. Jensen shared in the fundraiser description that Zinne's widow and the couple's son are grieving while also facing mounting financial burdens. 'Your contribution will make a significant difference in providing financial stability for Jeff's family,' Jensen wrote. 'All funds raised will go directly to his wife and son to help with funeral costs and medical expenses.' The fundraiser ended with a note from the couple's toddler son: "Love you, Dada Guy". Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Yahoo
7-Year-Old Sister of 3 Girls Killed in Wyoming Mom's Murder-Suicide Dies: 'She Gained Her Angel Wings'
The 7-year-old girl who survived after being shot by her mother alongside her three sisters in a murder-suicide has now died. Police in Wyoming believe Tranyelle Harshman shot her four daughters in the head, killing three of them, before calling 911 and then shooting herself around 1:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 10, PEOPLE previously reported. Tranyelle's husband Cliff Harshman told KTVQ that he'd lost his 2-year-old daughters, Brooke and Jordan, in the shooting. Tranyelle's 9-year-old daughter, Brailey, whom she shares with Quinn Blackmer, also died, while their 7-year-old daughter Olivia survived. Quinn has since confirmed Olivia sadly died on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 3:44 p.m. local time, per a Facebook post shared on Sunday. Olivia's stepmom, Katelynn Blackmer, also confirmed the sad news in an update on a GoFundMe page set up to help the family financially amid the tragedy. "Olivia is with her sisters now. She gained her angel wings yesterday at 3:44pm. She fought so so hard up til the last minute!" the update read. "Her body and her brain had been through too much, medication helped but we reached a point where medical options were exhausted and her body only continued to get worse. She kept fighting through it all though until her heart stopped," Katelynn, who also shares a 1-year-old son with Quinn, posted, adding that the family is "grateful she hung on as long as she did so we could get some valuable time with our sweet baby girl the last five days." Quinn added on Facebook, "The amount of [devastation] we feel and are going through is so much." "The peace I find is knowing that my babies don't have to be apart from each other and they can also be with their other sisters," he shared alongside a photo of the sisters with angel wings. Tranyelle's husband Cliff previously told KTVQ of the shooting, 'I know this was something beyond what I can comprehend. I'm a mess. ... I don't even know how to explain this to you. I'm so angry with her for the decision that was made.' He said his wife had struggled with mental health problems, including postpartum depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. 'People don't understand how mental illness isn't just a willpower thing. It's chemical imbalances in your brain. It's damaged pathways in your brain,' Cliff added, per the outlet. 'She was an incredible mom and she loved those kids.' 'My wife was not a monster,' he told the Cowboy State Daily in a phone interview, stating that his wife was under treatment. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Tranyelle had called 911 on Feb. 10 to report a shooting in the home and told a dispatcher she believed her children were dead, per a Big Horn County Sheriff's Office release. She added that two of them would be found upstairs in their cribs and the other two would be located in a downstairs bedroom. Tranyelle also let the dispatcher know that she 'could be found in her upstairs bedroom and that she was going to do the same to herself,' per the sheriff's release. GoFundMe pages set up to help the Blackmer family and Cliff Harshman had both raised over $100,000 as of Monday, Feb. 17. If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor. Read the original article on People
The Independent
14-02-2025
- The Independent
A mother killed three of her young daughters. Her devastated husband blames PTSD: She ‘loved those kids'
A Wyoming mother killed her three young daughters in the family home before turning the gun on herself in a horrifying case that has left her devastated husband reeling. Cliff Harshman said he is struggling to comprehend the actions of his wife, Tranyelle Harshman, who he said was battling mental illness. 'This was something beyond what I can comprehend,' Cliff told KTVQ. 'I'm a mess … I don't even know how to explain this to you. I'm so angry with her for the decision that was made.' 'People don't understand how mental illness isn't just a willpower thing,' he continued. 'It's chemical imbalances in your brain. It's damaged pathways in your brain. She was an incredible mom and she loved those kids.' He is grieving the loss of his 2-year-old twin daughters Brooke and Jordan, and his 9-year-old step-daughter Brailey. Harshman's other step-daughter Olivia, 7, survived, but suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and is currently fighting for her life in a local hospital, according to a GoFundMe page set up for the family. Tranyelle, 32, was at home with her four daughters on Monday, February 10, in the small town of Byron, Big Horn County. The girls were at home because they had been suffering from the flu, Cliff told the Cowboy State Daily. He was working out of state at the time. Harshman told the State Daily that his wife was undergoing treatment for her mental health issues, and explained that she was dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder and post-partum depression. 'My wife was not a monster,' he said. 'This is so out of character. It's unbelievable what had happened. We'd been getting her help, and along the way something didn't work. As angry as I may be with her, I still love her – and I lost her as well.' The Big Horn County Sheriff Office's shared the harrowing details of what unfolded in a media release. The events immediately leading up to the killings are unknown, but after Tranyelle shot her daughters, she called 911. Police said that Tranyelle told the call dispatcher where they could locate the bodies of the children. 'She told the dispatcher two children would be located upstairs in their cribs and two children would be downstairs in their shared bedroom,' Big Horn County Sheriff Ken Blackburn said in the media release. 'The caller further stated she could be found in her upstairs bedroom and that she was going to do the same to herself,' Blackburn continued. The dispatcher pleaded with Tranyelle to remain on the line until emergency services arrived at the scene, but the mom said it was 'too late.' First responders found her still alive when they arrived at the house, but she later died from her injuries in a local hospital. Little Olivia was airlifted to a hospital where she remains in critical condition. Olivia's biological father, Quinn Blackmer, has been keeping vigil by her bedside while grieving the loss of his other daughter, Brailey. 'I'm furious. I'm trying my hardest to bury that for a while and to focus on the now, because that anger isn't going to bring my child back,' he told KTVQ. The two fathers have been leaning on one another for support.
