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Authorities identify snowboarder who died on closed trail at New England resort

Ski lift chairs on bright winter day
FILE PHOTO (Elnur - stock.adobe.com)
(Elnur - stock.adobe.com)

CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine — Authorities on Tuesday identified a snowboarder who died in a fall on a trail at a popular New England ski resort over the weekend.

A spokesperson for Sugarloaf Mountain in Carrabassett Valley, Maine, confirmed to Boston 25 News that a death occurred at the resort on Saturday morning.

Ski patrol found the snowboarder, who officials identified as 63-year-old Kendall Willard, of Kingfield, unresponsive about 800 feet from the top of a closed trail in the woods around 9 a.m.

Willard was transported to a medical room at the resort, and life-saving measures were initiated, but he was pronounced dead around 9:45 a.m.

The Maine Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that Willard’s cause of death was blunt force trauma.

Carrabassett Valley Police Chief Mark Lopez said Willard was on a chair lift when he dropped a glove down the trail. He was walking to retrieve the glove when he slipped, fell, and skidded 800 feet into a cluster of trees.

In a statement, the Carrabassett Valley Police Department said, “Chief Lopez wishes to express his deepest condolences to the family and friends of Kendall Willard during this time.”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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