Body of Missing Canadian Skier Found in Zermatt
17th May 2024
Last modified on May 19th, 2024
The man went missing on April 1st after an avalanche in the Riffelberg area of the Swiss resort. Three other people died in the accident.
The body of Sean Thomas was found by an off-duty Swiss police officer who was hiking in the avalanche area.
The police have confirmed it is the 30-year-old Canadian citizen who was reported missing after the avalanche.
He was identified at the time by the Canadian Government as Canadian Armed Forces member Captain Sean Thomas.
Captain Thomas was on leave in Zermatt, Switzerland, from an operation in the Middle East.
He was an Infantry Officer with the Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada, a Reserve unit under 31 Canadian Brigade Group.
He joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 2018.
Capt. Sean Thomas. Image c/o Government of Canada.
A 58-year-old Swiss man, a 25-year-old Canadian woman and a 15-year-old American boy died in the avalanche on April 1st.
The 25-year old woman, Nicole Nagy, was Capt Thomas’s girlfriend.
A 20-year-old Swiss man was rescued from the snow.
Zermatt avalanche. Image c/o Valais cantonal police.
We reported on the accident at the time on PlanetSKI:
Around 45 people some with avalanche dogs were involved in the search & rescue operation.
The huge avalanche was filmed by a by-stander.
Major avalanche in Zermatt now – several people feared to be trapped- let’s hope there are no victims #Zermatt #Riffelberg video by @Alpenweerman #Lawine #Lawinenniedergang pic.twitter.com/YTf8bAQr2p
— Pascal Meier,MD (@DrPascalMeier) April 1, 2024
It followed heavy snow and strong winds in the area.
Now the snow is melting as Spring is underway with Summer approaching.
Last winter there were 64 avalanche deaths in Europe, below the annual average.
19 were in Switzerland.
Avalanche in the Alps. Image © PlanetSKI
There have though been some late season fatalities, both in Switzerland and North America.
