Though people use ski lift chairs regularly with few issues, sometimes serious incidents occur. On December 16, 2024, an 8-year-old boy fell from a ski lift chair at Mount Ski Gull in Nisswa, Minnesota.
When first responders arrived, they discovered that the boy had fallen between 30 to 40 feet from the ski lift chair. The incident has sparked concerns about ski lift safety.
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The 8-year-old boy was hospitalized.
Cass County Sheriff’s Office said it received a 911 call about the accident about 6:30 p.m., WJON News reported. When first responders arrived at Mount Ski Gull, they treated the boy at the scene.
The Ski Gull Ski Patrol, Pillager Fire & Rescue, North Memorial Ambulance, and Life Link Helicopter provided assistance, according to CBS News. The boy was then airlifted to a Twin Cities hospital.
His condition is not known at this time.
As of December 18, 2024, not many details have been released by officials, including the name of the 8-year-old boy. Additionally, his condition is not known.
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It's not clear what caused him to fall.
Per Fox 9, it’s unclear what was happening in the moments leading up to the boy’s fall from the ski lift. Authorities haven’t commented on the severity of the boy’s injury, nor have they spoken about the exact cause.
How safe are ski lifts?
Ski lifts can be scary, especially for those who are already afraid of heights. Accidents like this one can make ski lifts seem even less safe. Although accidents can and do happen, they’re relatively rare, Sean Doll, a professor of mountain resort management concentration at Vermont State University, told SKI magazine.
“Like any other form of transportation, such as automobiles, airlines, etc., lift safety has improved through the years,” Doll told the magazine in 2023. “The industry is currently in the throes of replacing and updating a significant number of lifts in North America with the most up-to-date advancements in lift technology and safety features.”
Although relatively rare, other ski lift incidents have occurred recently.
In February 2024, a 16-year-old girl fell from a chairlift at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in California. The teen was reportedly “not completely seated” when she started to fall. She was hospitalized because of the accident.
In November, a 32-year-old man fell from a chairlift at Keystone Ski Resort in Colorado. He was airlifted to the hospital. Earlier this month in Montana, a chair fell off a ski lift. Luckily, no one was injured because the chair was unoccupied at the time.
