Teenage skier who died at Schweitzer identified

A 15-year-old skier who died Tuesday in an accident at Schweitzer Mountain Ski Resort was identified today by the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office. William C. Johnson died after striking a tree and falling into a tree well while skiing in a heavily treed area of the resort, the sheriff’s office said in a news release. Records show Johnson last scanned his lift pass on the mountain at 11:25 a.m. Tuesday. He was found stuck in a tree well just before noon by a group of snowboarders, who extracted him from the well before going for help, officials said. Schweitzer Mountain Ski Patrol arrived by 12:30 p.m. and began performing CPR. Johnson was taken to the resort’s first aid area in the main lodge, where the teen was pronounced dead by a doctor from Bonner General Hospital about 1:25 p.m. Johnson was a sophomore at Sandpoint High School, the sheriff’s office said.