A snowboarder stuck on a broken ski lift at a resort in Montana was forced to rappel down a cliff after being lowered from the chair by ski patrol in what a witness described as a “dramatic event” over the weekend.

The unidentified snowboarder was among 140 skiers and snowboarders that were evacuated over a three-hour period after Chair 5 at Whitefish Mountain Resort broke down.

The video of the rescue ends before the snowboarder reaches the bottom, but Billy Marcial, who captured the footage, told FTW Outdoors he made it safely down.

“I didn’t stick around to watch after they got him down,” Marcial told FTW Outdoors. “I’m guessing his friend on the lift with him had to [have made it down safely] as well.”

It wasn’t known if any others also had to rappel a cliff.

Marcial said that the snowboarder must have rappelled around 200 feet from chair to the ground.

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“This is something that is not completely uncommon, but you never expect to happen,” Marcial told FTW Outdoors. “Plus with the nature of the terrain makes it much more exciting.

“I would describe [it] as a dramatic event that was mitigated and managed perfectly by Whitefish Mountain Resort Ski Patrol. It gives me an added sense of security getting to see them evacuate a person at one of the worst spots on the mountain.”

Photos courtesy of Billy Marcial.

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