Woman buried in avalanche lives long enough to take final call from mom, husband says
A woman was skiing in Banff National Park with her husband and his friend on Jan. 10 when the group triggered an avalanche near Mount Hector. She was completely buried and her husband dug for hours to pull her out of the snow.
The next day, she would be dead.
Stars Air Ambulance airlifted Laura Kosakoski, 32, to the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, according to Newstalk 1010.
At the hospital, she flatlined but was revived and there seemed to be hope, the CBC reported. The next morning, doctors told Adam Campbell, her husband, that her bowel died, which was “incompatible with life.” They decided to “let her body slowly fade away.”
Kosakoski’s mother booked a flight to Calgary, but was still in transit when she got the news, according to the CBC. When her plane touched down, she called Kosakoski, who was still holding on.
“Fortunately she was able to... she answered the call and we were able to put her up on speakerphone to Laura’s ear, and she was able to say goodbye to her daughter before she flatlined,” Campbell told the CBC.
Kosakoski is from Kamloops and studied medicine at the University of British Columbia, according to the Calgary Herald.
“Laura has been my rock, and has shown me that true beauty, love and joy can be found in even the most trying of circumstances,” Campbell said in a statement to Calgary Herald. “That spirit defined her, and we’re keeping that close to our hearts today. Laura touched so many lives, and there are no words to express how deeply she will be missed.”
Campbell also thanked the hospital and first responders who helped Kosakoski. He’s asked for privacy as the family copes with Kosakoski’s loss, according to CTV News.
More details on Kosakoski’s memorial will be released in the next few days, Calgary Herald reported.
This story was originally published January 13, 2020 at 5:46 PM with the headline "Woman buried in avalanche lives long enough to take final call from mom, husband says."