Boy gets caught on ski lift in tense moment at Utah resort

SUNDANCE, Utah (KSTU) — A scary scenario at Sundance Resort was caught on camera Wednesday when a boy skiing with his family got caught on a ski lift.

It happened when the boy was trying to exit the ski lift at one of the resort’s stations. The boy’s backpack got stuck in the chair, leaving him dangling from the chair as it continued up the mountain.

Phil Warner had come to Sundance to go skiing with his daughters when the boy in the chair behind him got caught.

“I just heard screaming, help, help, help,” said Warner.

Warner started filming the rescue with his phone and you can hear his voice as he tries to keep the boy calm. The lift was brought to a halt as employees worked to resolve the situation.

“The lift operator did a good job stopping the lift as soon as he could,” said Warner.

The ski lift operator called on the radio for help and within minutes, ski patrol arrived to assess the situation.

“There was someone on the ground talking to him the whole time and I was trying to keep him calm too,” said Warner.

Ski Patrol quickly realized they needed a ladder, but as he waited, the young boy became more and more frightened.

“I think he was hurting. I think the backpack was holding his weight on his arms,” said Warner.

Once they got the ladder, ski patrol was able to climb up and get the backpack off the boy.

Czar Johnson, Director of Mountain Operations at Sundance, said these scenarios do happen every once in a while.

“People get caught up in chairlifts with backpacks and even ski jackets and ski poles and helmets. It does happen,” said Johnson.

Johnson said, in order to avoid these kinds of scary scenarios, skiers and snowboarders should start preparing to unload before it’s time to get off the ski lift.

“It’s a good idea to check your backpack, move around a little bit, make sure you aren’t caught up on anything before you do unload,” said Johnson.

They also ask skiers and boarders to avoid carrying extra items like backpacks.

“The lift operators will strongly encourage them to take it off. Ideally, when you do that you would take it off and put it in front of you and put your arms through it in front so your backpack is sitting on your chest,” Johnson said.

Luckily, the young boy managed to walk away without any injuries.

“A lot of things could’ve gone wrong and they didn’t,” Warner said.