Skier CR Johnson killed at Squaw Valley
Skiing accident claims another life joing the ranks of celebrities Natasha Richardson and Sonny Bono. Sadly, a skier who previously suffered brain injury, was again injured despite wearing protective gear and helmet.
Squaw Valley, home of the Oympics, is a popular ski resort near Lake Tahoe, California. It is also close to Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Lake Tahoe is partly in California and partly in Nevada. You can stand with one foot in California and one in Nevada in the town of Southshore, about 45 minutes from Squaw Valley. The Nevada side has hotels and casinos which abruptly stop on the California side.
ESPN reporter Micah Abrams:
Twenty-six-year-old C.R. Johnson was killed Wednesday while skiing at Squaw Valley, Calif. According to a statement issued by the resort, the Lake Tahoe native caught an edge on exposed rocks while entering the Light Towers area above the Cornice II lift. He fell through rocks before coming to a rest several hundred yards below the entry. Ski Patrol were on the scene within minutes, but efforts to revive Johnson failed. He was reportedly wearing a helmet.
Johnson was known in recent years for his inspiring return to skiing after a traumatic brain injury that he suffered in December of 2005. The injury, sustained when another skier accidentally landed on him during a run, left him in a coma for 10 days. He spent 34 days in the hospital and several months in rehab, but was back on snow by the end of that winter. He made steady progress in recent seasons and this winter finished third in the prestigious Red Bull Linecatcher event in the French Alps.
The ongoing injury and particulary brain injury that permeates so many sporting events, warrants the repeating..."Wear a helmet and protective gear."
