2 die in separate incidents at Whitefish resort

A tree well claimed a 29-year-old victim in a snowboarding accident Saturday evening, and a 68-year-old man died on the slopes Saturday afternoon.

Kalispell resident Scott Allen Meyer, 29, died after snowboarding on Big Mountain in Whitefish.

Meyer was last seen alive around 1:30 p.m. He was reportedly snowboarding alone. When he failed to meet friends, as had been planned, and it became dark, people became worried because “that wasn't like him,” Sheriff Chuck Curry said.

Big Mountain Ski Patrol contacted the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office to request search and rescue efforts shortly after 5:30 p.m. Meyer was found at 7:30 p.m., a sheriff’s office press release said.

Meyer was not breathing when he was found in a tree well, an area at the base of a tree that usually has deeper snow than the surrounding area.

Resuscitation efforts were begun, but Meyer was pronounced dead at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

Initial findings revealed that Meyer was wearing appropriate safety equipment, the press release said.

Meyer worked as a probation and parole officer for the state of Montana.

The 68-year-old man was found by Whitefish Mountain employees in the middle of Ed’s Run at 12:55 p.m. Saturday, according to Whitefish Mountain Resort media relations representative Donnie Clapp.

The man was far from trees and had no signs of physical injury. He had a faint pulse. Employees tried to resuscitate the man, who was transported to North Valley Hospital.

Curry said the man died of an apparent heart attack. The man’s identity was not released.