Mt. Bachelor Ski Area Sued After Two Deaths

BEND, Ore. (AP) – The families of a skier and snowboarder who died on the same day at a central Oregon ski area jointly filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking $30 million.

The lawsuit filed Thursday contends Mt. Bachelor failed to warn of the risks of tree wells after weeks of snowfall.

Tree wells are voids that form beneath trees and can kill people who fall into them.

Twenty-four-year-old Alfonso Braun of Bend and 19-year-old Nicole Panet-Raymond of Eugene suffocated in tree wells in separate incidents on the mountain in 2018.

Mt. Bachelor President and General Manager John McLeod said those types of incidents caused by natural hazards on the mountain are fortunately rare.