Vail Positional Asphixia Accident Victim did not Fall Through Chair

[Mike King]

Coroner: Vail skier who died of positional asphyxia didn’t fall through chair

Eagle County Coroner Kara Bettis continues to investigate the death of Jason Varnish, 46, on Feb. 13 at Vail while riding Chair 37 in Blue Sky Basin. In an Eagle County news release on Monday,...

www.aspentimes.com

 

[tball]

Here's the brief press release from Eagle County:

Eagle County

www.eaglecounty.us

So, a witness reported that the seat was up. The Coroner says he didn't fall through the seat.

The one other piece of new information is he attempted to load the chair with a companion. I don't believe that's been mentioned before. Oh my, I really feel for his companion.

So what does this mean?

Maybe they both tried to bail off the chair when they saw the seat was up and Jason Varnish's coat became entangled and strangled him.

Any other scenarios that could fit the few facts we know?

I still don't see any scenario where Vail isn't 100% at fault, assuming the seat was up as reported.

 

[James]

Did he go all the way up hanging in his coat?

 

[Seldomski]

Now I'm more confused. It sounds like he was not hanging from the chair by his coat. If he had, it probably would have been photographed and put on social media. It sounds like he may have sat on the cushion as he tried to lower it. The cushion grabbed the edge of his coat. His coat ended up compressing him and restricted breathing. He couldn't stand up again because he was airborne and his weight was holding his coat clamped to his body?

 

[Mike King]

Here's the brief press release from Eagle County:

Eagle County

www.eaglecounty.us

So, a witness reported that the seat was up. The Coroner says he didn't fall through the seat.

The one other piece of new information is he attempted to load the chair with a companion. I don't believe that's been mentioned before. Oh my, I really feel for his companion.

So what does this mean?

Maybe they both tried to bail off the chair when they saw the seat was up and Jason Varnish's coat became entangled and strangled him.

Any other scenarios that could fit the few facts we know?

I still don't see any scenario where Vail isn't 100% at fault, assuming the seat was up as reported.

@tball, we do not have all of the information. Let's see what those involved in the investigation have to say rather than rush to judgement.

Mike

 

[tball]

@Mike King, do you really think we are going to get more information? That would be great. Where's it going to come from?

Vail Resorts? Nope.

The Coroner? It seems unlikely given the brevity of the last press release.

Based on the information we have about the seat being up, I believe Vail is 100% at fault. If there are any scenarios where they are not, I'd love to hear them.

Also, if there were any facts that showed Vail wasn't at fault, I'm sure we would have heard them by now.

 

[jmeb]

This happened on a lift. It means the Colorado Tramway Board will have a full investigation which the coroner is only a part of. Vail does not get to decide what is and what is not public. That's the state Boards decision on what information to release depending on what they find and what privacy the victim and their family are entitled to.

We'll get more information. It takes time to do a full investigation of an incident like this.

Saying "based on the information we have" when we lack significant information is rushing to judgement.

 

[tball]

Saying "based on the information we have" when we lack significant information is rushing to judgement.

We lack significant information because it's not being made public.

There are some simple and well-known facts that both Vail Resorts and the Coroner know that they are not making public:

• How far up the line was he?
• Did ski patrol have to extract him from the chair?
• Where was CPR performed?
• Did witnesses see him hanging from the chair?
• Where are all the witnesses?

All the while Vail Resorts is spinning the story to make it sound like they did nothing wrong. And there are no witness accounts in spite of what must have been a good number if not a large crowd who saw what happened.

I wonder if the terms and conditions of a Vail ticket/pass include a non-disparagement clause? That could be a way to keep witnesses from talking to the media.

 

[Vcize]

We lack significant information because it's not being made public.

There are some simple and well-known facts that both Vail Resorts and the Coroner know that they are not making public:

• How far up the line was he?
• Did ski patrol have to extract him from the chair?
• Where was CPR performed?
• Did witnesses see him hanging from the chair?
• Where are all the witnesses?

All the while Vail Resorts is spinning the story to make it sound like they did nothing wrong. And there are no witness accounts in spite of what must have been a good number if not a large crowd who saw what happened.

I wonder if the terms and conditions of a Vail ticket/pass include a non-disparagement clause? That could be a way to keep witnesses from talking to the media.

There is no way Vail would have been able to catch this. It's not like their first response to the guy dying was to run around and tell everyone in the area that they're not allowed to talk about it. And as far as I know, no one on here that holds an Epic pass has gotten an email blast from Vail reminding everyone not to talk. So there's no way they would have communicated this to the witnesses because there were likely lots of them and few likely came in for any kind of questioning.

That's why I think this latest report that seems to insinuate he was in a more natural looking seated position is probably closer to the truth. It just doesn't make sense that the guy would be hanging from the lift like a noose and there were no witnesses and the lifty didn't see it and stop the chair. It seems more likely that it was some kind of freak accident where he was seated and the jacket was pulling on him from behind or something and it wasn't immediately obvious that something was wrong.

 

[Mike King]

We lack significant information because it's not being made public.

There are some simple and well-known facts that both Vail Resorts and the Coroner know that they are not making public:

• How far up the line was he?
• Did ski patrol have to extract him from the chair?
• Where was CPR performed?
• Did witnesses see him hanging from the chair?
• Where are all the witnesses?

All the while Vail Resorts is spinning the story to make it sound like they did nothing wrong. And there are no witness accounts in spite of what must have been a good number if not a large crowd who saw what happened.

I wonder if the terms and conditions of a Vail ticket/pass include a non-disparagement clause? That could be a way to keep witnesses from talking to the media.

It takes time to conduct a thorough investigation, and investigators are rightfully reluctant to release information prior to having completed the investigation. The facts will eventually be released, whether as a result of the public inquiry by the Tramway board or through the course of litigation.

In the meantime, I think we should keep the speculation to a minimum. It is only fair to both the victim and to Vail.

Mike

 

[tball]

There is no way Vail would have been able to catch this. It's not like their first response to the guy dying was to run around and tell everyone in the area that they're not allowed to talk about it. And as far as I know, no one on here that holds an Epic pass has gotten an email blast from Vail reminding everyone not to talk. So there's no way they would have communicated this to the witnesses because there were likely lots of them and few likely came in for any kind of questioning.

That's why I think this latest report that seems to insinuate he was in a more natural looking seated position is probably closer to the truth. It just doesn't make sense that the guy would be hanging from the lift like a noose and there were no witnesses and the lifty didn't see it and stop the chair. It seems more likely that it was some kind of freak accident where he was seated and the jacket was pulling on him from behind or something and it wasn't immediately obvious that something was wrong.

If it happened near the bottom, any witnesses would have to go up that lift after it reopened.

That would also been the case when the man was similarly pantsed on the same lift:

Southern exposure: Man left dangling trouserless and upside down after Vail ski lift mishap

These pictures show possibly the most embarrassing thing that could happen on a ski lift.

www.dailymail.co.uk

What doesn't make sense was the insinuation with the latest release of information that he was in a more natural seated position. How would that possibly kill someone? I'm all ears.

In the meantime, I think we should keep the speculation to a minimum. It is only fair to both the victim and to Vail.

My feeling is what's not fair to the victim is Vail and the coroner releasing selective information making it sound like Vail did nothing wrong.

What was the point of the Coroner's press release? They said he didn't fall through the chair. So why was his coat so tight he couldn't breathe? You'd think they would mention that.

I don't see how you die of positional asphyxia sitting on a chair. You'd have to be hanging from the chair, wouldn't you?

They haven't said he wasn't hanging from the chair, just that he didn't fall through the chair. That doesn't mean he didn't fall off the chair and his coat became entangled.

 

[Noodler]

Have to admit... that press release feels really fishy. Coroner goes out of his way to point out that the skier didn't fall through the chair, yet fails to divulge any other details that you would naturally want to know as follow-up. Very weird.

 

[pchewn]

This article says he actually left the seated area of the lift and his jacket hung him as he left the lift. His ski buddy left the lift without getting a jacket caught up.

So it appears that he did not fall through the chair, a witness is available (his ski partner), and he actually left the lift (but got caught by his jacket).

At least that is the current state of facts being reported..


https://www.canoncitydailyrecord.co...ocated-vail-lift-seat-clothing-investigation/

 

[Fuller]

@pchewn Your link has some malware attached and my computer freaked out - I think my assets have already been transferred to Karachi.

 

[tball]

@pchewn's link is fine for me. Finally, some reporting that makes sense:

At least one witness told authorities that the chairlift’s folding seat was raised when Jason Varnish, 46, and another man loaded the lift in the resort’s Blue Sky Basin area on Feb. 13 — creating a gap where the seat should have been — but investigators aren’t sure whether Varnish fell, jumped or was pushed off the chairlift, Eagle County communications manager Justin Patrick said Tuesday.​

​

“He was either propelled off the lift, or self-ejected, or in some way was removed from the chairlift,” he said. As Varnish left the lift, his coat caught on the chair, and then pulled tight around his chest and abdomen, and suffocated him, according to Eagle County Coroner Kara Bettis.​

​

Patrick said Tuesday that he believed Varnish was “dangling by his coat” and the “weight of his body constricted his clothing.”​

​

The man who boarded the lift with Varnish, a friend who had been skiing with Varnish that day, also left the chairlift but landed safely, Patrick said, adding that authorities do believe the chairlift seat was raised when the men loaded and that the seat’s position impacted the accident.​

​

“He bailed too, or was ejected, and obviously it’s a freak accident if your coat gets caught,” Patrick said.​

​

Skier who suffocated on Vail lift may not have fallen through seat but investigation is ongoing

The New Jersey skier who suffocated to death after his coat became caught on a ski lift at Vail Mountain earlier this month may not have fallen through an opening in a chairlift seat as originally …

www.canoncitydailyrecord.com

So he fell, jumped, or was pushed off the lift after seeing the seat was raised. It doesn't really matter which, as it wouldn't have happened if the seat was down as it should have been.

I've been thinking I would have jumped if I loaded with a seat up. Better and safer than riding to the top and possibly falling as a result.

I would have never considered the risk of clothing being caught. That was a freak occurrence following a reasonable action. Vail's part was pure negligence.

 

[scott43]

Well..as my lawyer friend says..they'll make an argument..and see how it goes..

 

[James]

Wow, killed by your coat. Who knew that could happen?

 

[scott43]

Wow, killed by your coat. Who knew that could happen?

Maybe he pissed the coat off...

 

[crgildart]

So much for the holier than thou "you can put the chair down yourself if you're paying attention" suggestions. Really though, I've had to flip some down myself once in a blue moon. Seems more likely that he was hanging by the coat, than sitting on it pinched under the seat pad.

 

[pchewn]

So much for the holier than thou "you can put the chair down yourself if you're paying attention" suggestions. Really though, I've had to flip some down myself once in a blue moon. Seems more likely that he was hanging by the coat, than sitting on it pinched under the seat pad.

If either the lift attendant or the skier had lowered the seat, the outcome would likely have been successful.

I don't know how that is "holier than thou".

Your own experience shows that skiers can lowere the seat when needed, so I'm not sure what your point is.