A snowboarder who went viral after being found buried in heavy snow has spoken out for the first time about his dramatic encounter with death.
Ian Steger said he wanted to tell his fiancee how much he loves her after he died on March 3.
Steger was accidentally rescued after skier Francis Zuber saw his board sticking out of the snow in an amazing clip that has since gone viral.
Viewers were struck by Steger’s calm response to saving his life as he told Zuber: “Thanks for that man.”
A skier stumbled over a snowboarder buried in a snow-covered tree in Washington state and was able to dig him out in a remarkable rescue that was caught on video
Now the two men have reunited on screen to discuss the March 3 incident.
“You can see in this video that Francis asked if I was okay.” Steger opposite ABC7.
“He let me know he was approaching me. I haven’t heard anything about that.
“It was total darkness. I could only hear my own breathing.’
Experts say Steger would have died had he not been discovered by Zuber.
“One of the things I thought about while I was down there was like, wow, like, I’m going to die down here,” Steger said.
“And I won’t be able to tell my fiancee how much I love her.”
The snowboarder was trapped in a tree well at Mt. Baker Ski Resort.
Zuber was skiing in the same part when he started catching in deep powder.
In the video clip he can be seen quickly saving himself before spotting a snowboard sticking out of the deep snow.
Speaking to ABC7, Zuber said: “I saw that little flash of red out of the corner of my eye.
“And I knew it was kind of weird to see that because we’re out of bounds. I knew something was wrong. You know I yelled at him but no answer.”
The original video clip hears Zuber ask Steger, “Are you alright?”
Francis Zuber was skiing at Northwest Mt. Baker ski resort on March 3 when he began catching in deep powder
He manages to get out himself, but then quickly slows down when he sees a snowboard sticking out of the deep snow
Zuber quickly unbuckles his skis so he can maneuver over to the tree well—the space around a tree beneath its branches that doesn’t get as much snow as the surrounding open space—and attempt to rescue the snowboarder
Eventually, he digs out enough of the snowboarder that he can see his bespectacled head while his arm slowly waves
He quickly unbuckles his skis so he can maneuver over to the tree well—the space around a tree beneath its branches that doesn’t get as much snow as the surrounding open space—and attempt to rescue the snowboarder.
Zuber digs with his hands and calls: “Wait, I’m coming!”
Eventually, he digs out enough of the snowboarder that he can see his bespectacled head while his arm slowly waves.
‘Everything OK? Can you hear me?’ he asks as a little more snow falls and Zuber continues digging.
Eventually he reaches the snowboarder’s face and hears the victim take a deep breath.
He says, “Thank you,” to which Zuber replies, “Yes, no problem.”
“Okay, you’re good, I got you,” says Zuber. ‘Okay, we’re both going to catch our breath, then I’ll help you dig yourself out, okay?’
Zuber begins to build and dig an emergency shovel and is eventually able to get the snowboarder out.
He recounted the entire experience in an Instagram post that has already garnered over 2,000 likes.
Finally, Zuber reaches the snowboarder’s face and hears the victim take a deep breath
Zuber begins to build and dig an emergency shovel and is eventually able to get the snowboarder out
Zuber eventually shared the entire experience in an Instagram post that has already garnered over 2,000 likes
“Tree fountains are real,” he wrote. “If you ski or snowboard, take a moment to watch. This happened at @themtbakerskiarea a few weeks ago.
“The mountains don’t care how much skill or experience you have. They don’t care if you and your ski partner do everything right,” Zuber continues.
He also recommended people take a course to help them understand what to do in situations like the one he found himself in.
“I’m grateful I knew just enough to pull through and conduct a successful rescue,” Zuber said.
“And always look after each other out there.”
The endangered snowboarder was not named or identified.
Zuber added more details about the snowboarder in the comments of his viral post a few days ago.
“One detail I wanted to add that isn’t entirely clear in the video is that the buried snowboarder was with another group,” he said. ‘All very experienced drivers wearing the right Avy gear and walkies.’
“They took a path through the trees and planned to meet on the other side, something we’ve all done countless times. It was pure coincidence that I came across him.«
Tree wells are one reason the US Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service recommends that you always go skiing or snowboarding with a partner.