Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Australian Snowboarder, 22, Dies After Chairlift Entanglement at Japan’s Tsugaike

Police and the lift operator have opened an inquiry into reports of a backpack catching on the chair.

Overview

  • The victim was identified as Brooke Day of Queensland, who died in hospital on Sunday after a Friday accident in Nagano Prefecture.
  • Police and the operator said she was dragged by the chair and left hanging before a station employee activated an emergency stop.
  • Kyodo reported that an unfastened waist buckle and a shoulder strap on her backpack became caught on the chair, leaving her entangled.
  • Her family described her as an experienced snowboarder and said she had recently been using an avalanche airbag pack that became caught.
  • The chairlift is closed as Tsugaike Gondola Lift Co. and Nagano police investigate, with Australian officials providing consular support and repatriation planned.