Tragedy struck a Canadian resort Sunday after a drilling machine reportedly collided with a gondola, killing one man and critically injuring one woman.
Quebec’s provincial police say the incident occurred just before noon at the popular Mont-Tremblant’s resort village, north of Montreal, CBC reported. A subcontractor, identified only as a man in his 30s, was reportedly attempting to move the drill in anticipation for work scheduled on the following day when it struck two gondolas — one of which was occupied by a man and woman in their 50s, the outlet stated. However, police have reportedly not confirmed the cause of the accident.
One person was killed and another seriously injured after they were thrown from a gondola at Mont-Tremblant, Que., that was struck by construction equipment.https://t.co/LNqj6oSckP
— MSN Canada (@MSNca) July 17, 2023
“It was pretty bad. The gondola that was struck, there’s a part of the gondola that was ripped off and the people had no chance at all, they just fell on the ground at several meters, hitting hard on the ground,” Éric Cadotte, spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), told CBC. (RELATED: Ski Patroller Killed In Chairlift Accident At Park City Mountain Resort, Police Say)
“The impact was very brutal….” Cadotte continued, before asking, “Why was the drilling machine there and working under gondolas on a Sunday?”
The Quebec coroner’s office identified the deceased man as Sheldon Johnson, 50, of Ontario, the Toronto Star reported. The woman, who has not yet been identified, was reported to be in critical condition at a Montreal hospital, the outlet stated.
Law enforcement officials were on site Monday speaking to the drill operator and other witnesses about the incident, Quebec provincial police Sgt. Audrey-Anne Bilodeau told the Toronto Star.
The gondola lift, which takes riders on a panoramic trip to the summit of Mont-Tremblant, will remain closed until investigators “have obtained information to understand what happened,” Cindy L’Heureux, a spokeswoman for Quebec’s workplace health and safety board, told the outlet.