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Incident record

Backcountry skier falls about 30 m in the closed Haru no Taki area beside Grand Hirafu

Feb 15, 2025 · Niseko, Hokkaido

A visitor riding the backcountry outside the courses at Grand Hirafu, Niseko, fell about 30 m in the area known as Haru no Taki, broke an ankle and was lifted out by helicopter. Haru no Taki is an avalanche-prone, no-entry area where there have been deaths before.

A summary of public reports, written by Ski in Sky and checked against each source. It is not an official investigation, and it may change as investigations continue.

What happened

While riding the backcountry outside the Grand Hirafu courses, the visitor fell about 30 m at Haru no Taki and broke the left ankle. Police and others responded, and the visitor was hoisted into a helicopter. The report describes Haru no Taki as prone to avalanches, a no-entry area, with past fatal accidents nearby.

Date from the search summary of the UHB report; the time is not known.

Where

Outside the ski areaThe area known as Haru no Taki (春の滝), outside the courses of Niseko Tokyu Grand Hirafu, Kutchan town; a no-entry area.

Known only to the area.

Link to the ski area

Near a ski area, not inside it

Summary: 'グランヒラフ」スキー場で、コース外を滑るバックカントリーをしていた' and the area is 立ち入り禁止区域 (backcountry outside the courses; a no-entry area). Outside the managed area, so not linked to the resort.

People

Died0

Injured1

Rescued1

What is known about the cause

Not confirmed

Sources

  1. UHB Hokkaido Bunka Hoso ↗checked in search results
  2. UHB Hokkaido Bunka Hoso (via Yahoo! News) ↗
  3. UHB Hokkaido Bunka Hoso (via Excite News) ↗ · 2025-02-16
  4. HBC (via Yahoo! News) ↗checked in search results

This record was checked against search results for these reports (date, place and outcome); the original articles could not be opened.

Last checked against the sources on 2026-10-22.