Industry News
An 8-year-old boy from Breezy Point, Minnesota, was seriously injured after falling 30 to 40 feet from a chairlift at Mount Ski Gull on Monday evening. The incident occurred around 6:24 p.m.
The Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Ski Gull Ski Patrol, Pillager Fire & Rescue, North Memorial Ambulance, and Life Link Helicopter attended the scene. After receiving initial treatment on-site, the victim was airlifted to a hospital in the Twin Cities area.
The ski area has five lifts, four of which are surface lifts.ย The only aerial lift is the Triple Chairlift, which provides access to the racing start ramp, a blue and green run, and several black diamond runs.
Sheriff Bryan Welk stated in a news release that the boy’s condition remains unknown. The cause of the fall is still under investigation.
The incident comes in the same week that a 37-year-old snowboarder was seriously injured after falling from a chairlift at Keystone Resort, Colorado. The man was adjusting his binding with the safety bar up.
Mount Ski Gull, located in Nisswa, Minnesota, features 1.3 miles (2.1 kilometers) of slopes for skiing and snowboarding, with runs catering to all skill levels from beginner to expert. Five lifts, including a triple chair lift, provide access to the 190 vertical feet (58 vertical meters.) Mount Ski Gull boasts one of Minnesota’s longest snow tubing runs, stretching approximately 1,000 feet. The resort also includes a terrain park, night skiing opportunities, and a chalet. Mount Ski Gull is mainly known for its community involvement. It offers affordable “Learn to Ski” programs for local students and serves as a training ground for junior racers and high school ski teams.
According to a November 2024 NSAA news release, aerial ropeways (including chairlifts, trams, and gondolas) and surface lifts are one of
the safest methods of transportation.
Since 1956, there have been 35 fatalities related to aerial ropeways and surface lifts. Of these, 16 were due to mechanical malfunctions, 14 resulted from falls unrelated to mechanical errors (including six from medical incidents), and six involved employees in uncommon circumstances. Fatalities from mechanical malfunctions are rare, with 16 deaths from nine incidents between 1973 and January 31, 2024. Most occurred in the 1970s and 1980s, with the most recent passenger death at a U.S. ski resort in 2023 when a ski patroller at Park City was killed when a tree fell on the chairlift he was riding. Falls from lifts, which account for 14 fatalities since 1973, mostly occur in load and unload areas and typically don’t result in serious injury. NSAA is updating a study on the primary causes of chairlift falls using data from the 2022-23 ski season.
