Rob Coppoliro’s family’s GoFundMe account aims to raise $25,000 and had raised more than $20,000 by Tuesday night (April 23).
BANFF – A GoFundMe account has been established to help the family of a mountain guide who died last week after falling into a crevasse while skiing on a remote glacier in Banff National Park.
The man, identified by friends and family as Rob Coppoliro, 40, is survived by his wife, Rebecca Yarmuth, and two sons.
Friends and family described Coppolilo, a writer, mountain guide and all-around mountaineer, as “larger than life,” “a truly caring heart,” “selfless,” and “charismatic.” He has been described as a “great storyteller” and one of the best in the world. He is the most knowledgeable and reliable mountain guide.
“I am shocked to share that we lost Rob in a high mountain accident in Canada,” Pete Coppoliro said in a social media post.
“He was doing what he loved: guiding people in the mountains.”
Coppoliro, owner and operator of Seattle, Washington-based Betta Mountain Guides, was leading a trip in the Canadian Rockies when the accident occurred on Thursday (April 18).
Parks Canada officials said the Banff mission received an emergency call Thursday morning from Icefall Lodge, a remote area near the Lyell Icefield, and immediately dispatched a rescue team.
“Calls reported that a member of a guided backcountry ski party had fallen into a crevasse near Christian Peak in Banff National Park near the Alberta-British Columbia border.” , said James Eastham, a spokesman for the Yoho-Kootenay Field Unit. .
Three Parks Canada visitor safety experts arrived by helicopter from Banff.
“Upon arrival, the skier had been extricated from the crevasse and first aid was being administered,” Eastham said.
“Tourist safety experts continued first aid and transported the seriously injured skier to Lake Louise, where he was transferred to a STARS air ambulance.”
A STARS air ambulance transported a 40-year-old man to Foothills Medical Center in Calgary on Thursday in a life-threatening situation after falling into a crevasse while skiing on a remote glacier in Banff National Park.
STARS public information officer Blake Robert said the patient had injuries “consistent with a fall in a mountainous area.”
“STARS was then dispatched to an emergency scene in the Lake Louise area this afternoon to respond to a patient who sustained injuries from a fall in the mountain area,” Robert said.
Stuart Brideau, public education officer for Alberta Health Services Emergency Medical Services, said paramedics were also on hand to await the arrival of a patient from Alpine Helicopters around 11:50 a.m. Thursday (April 18). responded to the Lake Louise helipad.
“The patient had fallen and required extrication from a crevasse. EMS and STARS took over care of the adult in Louise in critical and life-threatening condition,” Brideau said. “They were then transported to Foothills Medical Center, where they remain in critical condition.”
Coppoliro’s family’s GoFundMe account aims to raise $25,000 and had raised more than $20,000 by Tuesday evening (April 23).
