Avalanche victim named; helicopter to bring survivors from backcountry
By Kyra Hoggan
It’s looking like Nelson RCMP will finally get the opportunity to communicate at length with witnesses to the avalanche death of Manfred Rockel, 46, of Calgary.
Rockel died while skiing at the Kokanee Glacier National Park on Jan. 16.
Nelson RCMP Staff Sgt. Dan Seibel said the location of the skiing group is so remote that it’s unclear even how many people are in the group – he believes as many as 15 people were backcountry skiing together, but can’t confirm those numbers. “I believe that some of them, at least, are coming out today,” he said. “We haven’t spoken with the witnesses yet – we would have needed a helicopter to get out there to interview them.” He said the skiers do have a satellite telephone and there has been some contact, but communications to this point have been severely limited. “We haven’t been able to pursue our investigation in the timely manner we would normally prefer,” he said, adding he’s hoping to clear up many of the details surrounding the accident this afternoon. Seibel said the group is in no danger as they make their way back toward civilization, as a helicopter is scheduled to airlift them out of the area.
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