Inquest into the death of Evan Greenwood [2011] NSWLC 37

Inquest into the death of Evan Greenwood [2011] NSWLC 37

Evan Greenwood died from exposure and hypothermia after likely becoming disorientated in poor weather and inadvertently skiing outside Charlotte Pass Ski Resort at a place where the resort boundary rope was too high or absent. The inquest found inadequate or non-existent missing person procedures at Charlotte Pass, inadequate boundary markings at likely exit points, and deficiencies in police procedures, induction and communication that caused delay before trained alpine search personnel were notified. Recommendations were required to improve resort boundary marking, resort missing person protocols, and police training and induction for missing person reports in Kosciuszko National Park.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
15 December 2011
Procedural Posture
Coronial Inquest / Findings and Recommendations
Outcome
Recommendations made following coronial inquest into the death of Evan Greenwood.
Legal Topics
['death of Missing Skier' 'ski Resort Boundary Marking and Maintenance' 'missing Person Procedures' 'police Search and Rescue Response' 'recommendations to Prevent Recurrence']
['coronial Law'] ['death of Missing Skier' 'ski Resort Boundary Marking and Maintenance' 'missing Person Procedures' 'police Search and Rescue Response' 'recommendations to Prevent Recurrence']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Coronial Inquest / Findings and Recommendations

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether Evan Greenwood skied outside the Charlotte Pass Ski Resort boundaries and whether those boundaries were adequately marked and maintained.' 'Whether Charlotte Pass Ski Resort had adequate protocols and procedures for handling reports of missing persons.' 'Whether the police response to reports that Evan Greenwood was missing was adequate, including induction and training at Jindabyne Police Station.' 'Whether the decision to suspend the search at 2100 on 6 September 2010 was justifiable.' 'Whether recommendations should be made to improve skier safety and missing person responses.']

Ratio Decidendi

Evan Greenwood died from exposure and hypothermia after likely becoming disorientated in poor weather and inadvertently skiing outside Charlotte Pass Ski Resort at a place where the resort boundary rope was too high or absent. The inquest found inadequate or non-existent missing person procedures at Charlotte Pass, inadequate boundary markings at likely exit points, and deficiencies in police procedures, induction and communication that caused delay before trained alpine search personnel were notified. Recommendations were required to improve resort boundary marking, resort missing person protocols, and police training and induction for missing person reports in Kosciuszko National Park.

Court Disposition

Recommendations made following coronial inquest into the death of Evan Greenwood.

Orders

  • ['Charlotte Pass Ski Resort should undertake a review of the signage, ropes and boundary markers which define the ski area boundary, to minimise the risk of a skier inadvertently skiing past the resort boundary.' 'Charlotte Pass Ski Resort should implement a policy that all boundary ropes and signage are checked and...