Boy Dies After Becoming Entangled In Rope Tow

A 13-year-old Seattle boy died after becoming tangled in a rope tow on a club-operated Snoqualmie Pass ski area.

The King County medical examiner’s office identified the victim as Jeremy Hale. He was pronounced dead Saturday afternoon at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and an autopsy to determine the cause of death was scheduled for this morning.

The boy’s jacket had become tangled in a rope tow at the Mountaineer’s club lodge, on club property between Ski Acres and the Snoqualmie Pass ski areas, said Greg Poehlein, ski patrol director at Ski Acres.

Poehlein and other patrol members responded to a call for help at 5 p.m. from the Mountaineer’s club facility.

He said they found the boy hanging from the rope at the top of the tow.

“His jacket got stuck on the rope, and he went through the safety gate, which turns the tow off,” Poehlein said.

He said rescuers got the boy down, found he had no pulse, and began CPR.

He said a pulse was later established, but rescue breathing was still required when the boy was airlifted to Harborview.

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