Buried alive, snowboarder used every 3rd breath to scream for help

A Golden, B.C., snowboarder says he feels lucky to be alive after falling into a "coffin-like" snow hole where he was trapped for five hours.

Trevor Hamre was stoked to be riding on opening day at Kicking Horse Mountain late last month, but in the middle of a run the 40-year-old expert snowboarder hit a hidden log and tumbled into a hole, suddenly finding himself buried and pinned under two fallen trees, with barely enough room to breathe. 

"It was really scary," said Hamre. "I slid right into an air pocket but the snow came down on top of me. I had much less space than a coffin."

Hamre said despite the feeling of being suffocated, he did his best not to panic, using every third breath to scream out for help. 

"I was stuck, man. I could move my hands across my chest and face but that was it," he said.

"I wasn't physically broken in any way, shape or form. I had all my faculties but couldn't do anything."

Luckily, just as the resort was closing, a skier heard Hamre's pleas for help and alerted the ski patrol who dug him out.

Hamre says being buried alive for a day has given him a new perspective on life. 

"It was a blessing in disguise really. I'm making a new bucket list, planning new things. It's like I shaved off all my anxieties and fears."