KELOWNA - The BC Coroners Service has confirmed the identity of a man
who died in an avalanche near Kimberley on March 23, 2013.
The man was Joel Conway, aged 38, of Kimberley.
Mr. Conway was one of a group of seven snowmobilers who had travelled
to the area of Hellroaring Creek southwest of Kimberley on a memorial
run for another Kimberley resident who died in an avalanche in the
same area four years earlier.
While the group was in the area, a large avalanche struck, burying two
of the men. One man managed to dig himself out, but Mr. Conway was
buried too deeply for self-rescue or for the other members of the
party to be able to rescue him. They sought help, and a major search-
and-rescue effort was launched. Mr. Conway's body was recovered from
the area on March 24.
The BC Coroners Service and RCMP continue to investigate this death.
The family of Mr. Conway has been notified.
The BC Coroners Service notes that the Canadian Avalanche Centre
continues to list the avalanche risk as "considerable" to "high" in
many parts of the province and urges all backcountry users to take
extreme care, including checking the Canadian Avalanche Centre website
for current conditions in B.C.