A 13-year-old boy has reportedly passed away from serious injuries due to a snowboarding accident at a popular ski resort in Oregon, as per authorities.
The boy is yet to be identified due to respect for his family. The victim reportedly struck a tree while riding through the dense wooded section of Mount Bachelor on the morning of Wednesday, as per a statement shared on Facebook by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office.
The teenager happened to be snowboarding down the mountain slope when he got separated from his mother and a family friend. At first, his loved ones didn’t realize where he was, but thanks to an application on his phone, they were able to locate him.
They did go back to the same spot where his phone was, and that’s where they saw he wasn’t moving. At that point, they knew something was not right, spotting him at the base of the tree.
As per the deputy, it’s still not clear why the teenager ended up getting off that trail. ‘It was kind of a tight area of trees’- he continued. It did have a trail through it.
Despite being brought to a local clinic at the mountain’s base, the local ski patrol just couldn’t save him. His cause of death is still being determined. Many do feel it might be linked to trauma, despite him wearing a helmet during the activity.