Snowboarder dies on Grouse Mountain after going off main trail and striking tree

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C. – A 16-year-old boy has died while snowboarding on Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver.

RCMP say the Brazilian exchange student was boarding with friends when he ventured off the main trail, fell about nine metres and struck a tree.

Police say the teen became separated from his friends but that heavy fog and sleet prevented staff at the mountain from conducting a search late Friday night.

A North Shore Search and Rescue team located the snowboarder just after midnight.

Attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police say the boy was not wearing a helmet, and that may have been a contributing factor in his death.