“Northwest news: Idaho pianist loses fingers in potato gun mishap; Rescue attempt planned for skiers stranded in B.C ...”

Northwest news: Idaho pianist loses fingers in potato gun mishap; Rescue attempt planned for skiers stranded in B.C ...

Posted: 17 Jan 2011 09:18 AM PST

Published: Monday, January 17, 2011, 9:11 AM Updated: Monday, January 17, 2011, 9:12 AM

Good morning, Pacific Northwest News readers.

As we mark the 25th annual anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Day, we offer two news stories from the region that strike a somber tone, the first an update to a fatal weekend avalanche in British Columbia and the second a sad tale of a potato gun gone awry.

But before we get to it, a reminder of how things work at Northwest News: we scour newspapers, television networks, and online magazines for the most interesting tidbits to folks around the Pacific Northwest. Then we collect snippets of articles (below in italics) for you to enjoy. So read up, click over and then come back and share your thoughts with your community here on OregonLive. Extra points for given remarks that are on topic and in good taste.

We begin north of the U.S. Canadian border, where an avalanche outside Nelson, British Columbia killed one skier and stranded more than a dozen of his companions. For the story, we turn to The Province tabloid newspaper of Vancouver:

Rescuers will attempt to reach a dead skier and his 14 companions Monday morning after the group became stranded near the Kokanee Glacier north of Nelson, B.C., by an avalanche the day before.

An attempt to reach the skiers shortly after the group was struck by the avalanche early Sunday afternoon failed when a helicopter was forced to turn back due to bad weather.

RCMP said emergency services were called at 12:30 p.m. Sunday by one of the skiers stating an avalanche had struck the group and one man was seriously hurt.

That skier, reportedly from Alberta, later died.

Now onto Idaho, where an Idaho State University student and pianist lost three fingers in a potato gun explosion Sunday.

The Idaho State Journal reports that Derek Schaible underwent surgery at Portneuf Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition overnight.

(Neighbor Paul) Dial said he was watching television when he heard the boom. "It was very loud. It shook the pictures on the wall," said Dial. Running outside to the house next door, Dial heard a woman screaming and when he came upon Schaible and the woman, there was a pool of blood forming.

When Schaible turned to face Dial he was covering his mutilated right hand with his left hand, saying, "What have I done, what have I done."

Schaible is a senior majoring in music performance, according to ISU's Web site. The Journal reports he had been scheduled to play piano last night at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at the nearby First United Methodist Church.

Here's to sending healing thoughts.

Check out more news with a Northwest focus:

» Front pages from 18 newspapers in Oregon, Idaho, Alaska, Washington and British Columbia.

» Stories from today's edition of The Oregonian.

» More of our headline picks from Northwest news sources.

-- Kimberly A.C. Wilson

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured site: So, Why is Wikileaks a Good Thing Again?.

online magazines

Monday, January 17, 2011