CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine — An 8-year-old girl fell 20-25 ft. off the Snubber ski lift at Sugarloaf Mountain around 1 p.m. Wednesday afternoon.
The marketing director told NEWS CENTER Maine that the girl was on the lift with her mom when employees noticed her struggling. Employees stopped the lift and deployed a catch net. He said the net was able to break her fall but said she fell on the side of it.
Sugarloaf Ski Patrol responded to the girl within minutes. She was conscious and alert but complained of back pain. Her immediate injuries did not appear life-threatening, but due to a pre-existing medical condition paramedics from NorthStar Ambulance called for a LifeFlight helicopter.
The girl was taken to Farmington by ambulance and was then transported to Eastern Maine Medical Center by LifeFlight.
The girl was wearing a helmet at the time of the fall. The skier and her family are from Maine, but Sugarloaf does not identify guests who are injured at the resort.
“This was obviously a scary incident for everyone involved, and our thoughts are with the family,” Sugarloaf General Manager Karl Strand said in a press release. “The safety of our guests is our first priority in everything we do, and I’m incredibly thankful to our lift attendants and ski patrollers, without whose quick actions this incident could have been much worse.”
An investigation into the incident by the Sugarloaf Ski Patrol is ongoing.
This story will be updated.
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