A Montreal woman who was lost for nine days after skiing backcountry near Golden died of hypothermia, the B.C. Coroners Service has confirmed.
Marie-Josée Fortin, 44, and her husband Gilles Blackburn, 51, got lost while skiing out of bounds at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort on Feb. 15.
Blackburn was rescued by a helicopter on Feb. 24, a day after the couple had been reported missing by family in Montreal. It’s not clear when Fortin died.
The RCMP has apologized for not initiating a search for the couple after skiers spotted several SOS signs, which were marked in the snow, on Feb. 17 and Feb. 21.
