Two Edmonton area men are dead, victims of an avalanche just west of Jasper near McBride B.C. The victims have been identified by family members as Shane Scheideman and Kory Wagner, both from the Keephills area, near Lake Wabamun.
Around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, both bodies were covered and airlifted off the mountain.
Scheideman, Wagner and a lone survivor were sledding Tuesday near McBride, but did not return to their cabin that evening. The trio was caught in an avalanche on Renshaw Mountain, with the lone survivor able to free himself from the debris. He was located Wednesday morning by other snowmobilers in the area.
Friends and family gathered at the Scheidman's home Thursday to remember Shane.
"He was my knight in shining armour. It was love at first sight and we've been together ever since, four beautiful children," said Shane's wife Bonnie.
Bonnie said Shane was passionate about snowmobiling and hunting and loved the outdoors.
She said she's been to the mountain where her husband died and never worried about her husband sledding in the mountains.
I never worried because they were so safe, they took precautions, even in December when all those other gentlemen died, you thought it's not going to happen to me," she said.
Bonnie recalls the how happy her husband was before leaving on his trip, excited over the ideal snow conditions in B.C.
"He kissed me and said I love you ... and he never said see ya, he just said I love you and then he was gone."
Kory's wife, Lori is pregnant with the couple's second child and they have a two-year-old daughter. She tells CTV her soulmate had no regrets and lived his life caring for other people.
"This love and support is a reflection on what a great man, father. son & brother he was," she said.
Lori is now pleading with other sledders to stay out of the mountains the rest of the season so they don't have to go through the same tragedy.
"I can't live remembering his tragic ending, I need to be celebrating his life."
Search and rescue workers were alerted to a possible situation when the group's unoccupied vehicle was found in a parking area. A team was dispatched to the area around Midnight, but had to delay their search to the morning.
With files from Susan Amerongen
