Other Towns, Skiing Snowboarding

NJ Man’s Death At Vail Resort: Witness, “lift operator was not paying attention,”

April 11, 2020

Previous MidJersey.news article on the accident where a New Jersey man died hanging from a ski lift accident at Chair 37 in Vail, Colorado

Complete report at Vail Daily, a local news outlet in Vail, Colorado

VAIL, COLORADO–The sheriff’s department released a report this week on the ski lift accident that killed New Jersey resident Jason Varnish, 46, of Short Hills at Chair Lift 37. as reported by Vail Daily

The report shows that a witness stated a seat was folded up so that a rider was not able to sit down as the witness and Varnish tried to ride Chair 37. The witness was able to get out of the way while Varnish’s clothing was caught on a rubber stopper according to the witness. Varnish was lifted 20 to 25 feet off the ground.

“The lift operator was not paying attention and had been cleaning off snow in the area,” according to the witness, the report states. “A few seconds later the lift stopped and (the witness) observed (Varnish) hanging from the lift.”

See the Vail Daily article for more information.

We have e-mailed the Sheriff’s Department to get a copy of the report and will updated with further information

  • Vail Colorado’s Legendary Back Bowls
  • March 3, 2020 file photo of Chair 37 at Vail, Colorado by Dennis Symons, Jr.
  • March 3, 2020 file photo of Chair 37 at Vail, Colorado by Dennis Symons, Jr.
  • March 3, 2020 file photo of Chair 37 at Vail, Colorado by Dennis Symons, Jr.
March 3, 2020 file photo of Chair 37 at Vail, Colorado by Dennis Symons, Jr.