Man Dies After Falling 80 Feet Into Crevasse in Canadian National Park
While skiing and snowboarding with friends in Jasper National Park, Alberta, a 38-year-old man fell into a crevasse and died on May 12, 2026, local news outlets reported.
The 25-meter-or about 80-foot-fall happened on the Athabasca Glacier, which is part of the Columbia Icefield and is a popular tourist attraction.
The CBC reported that Mathew Howell, a public information officer for the RCMP, said police were notified of the accident at around 5:30 p.m. by Parks Canada and joined safety crews at the scene around 90 minutes later.
He said that the park's visitor safety team told the RCMP that "they had visual confirmation on the patient and they could confidently say that he was deceased."
Retrieval of the man was postponed at the time because of the weather and the remote location, the RCMP said.
According to the Rocky Mountain Outlook, Parks Canada shared more details later in the week, adding that the group of three had been descending the glacier from the south ridge of Mount Andromeda before the fall.
Karly Savoy, a public relations and communications officer in Jasper National Park, said the group was equipped for crevasse rescue and tried to help, but couldn't get to the man because of "multiple surrounding crevasses," the Outlookreported.
The rescue team descended the crevasse at around 7:30 p.m. and confirmed that the man had died from injuries from the fall, Savoy said, noting that retrieval wasn't possible until May 14.
Police said the man was a Czech citizen but was currently living in Revelstoke, British Columbia.
Savoy offered Parks Canada's condolences for the family and friends of the man, also acknowledging "the efforts of first responders and Parks Canada staff who assisted during the incident."
Part of the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Athabasca Glacier has drawn millions of visitors over the years, according to Parks Canada.
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This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 2:50 PM.