FAIRBANKS - Alaska State Troopers believe a 9-year-old Fairbanks boy was killed Saturday at the Arctic Man Classic and Sno-Go event when his snowmachine fell into a deep glacier crevasse.
The boy, who was identified as Sjohn Brown, fell into a roughly 200-foot deep hole while riding at about 3:30 p.m. Authorities do not believe the boy survived and are still working on a plan to recover the body, troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said in an email.
According to troopers, the boy had been riding with his father and others in the area when his father took a break to watch from a hillside. When the boy rode around a small mound and did not reappear, the father reportedly rode to the location and found the boy had fallen through a hole.
Such holes, commonly called moulins, are formed when spring water flows onto glaciers and gradually erodes the ice.
Peters wrote that an experienced climber made it to the bottom, but was unable to locate the boy with a probe. The boy's goggles and helmet were located and his snowmachine was partially visible, but the boy was believed to be buried in deep snow in the bottom of the hole.
Peters said significant skill is required to rappel into the hole, and that trained personnel are needed on site to attempt a recovery. Troopers are waiting for final approval from the U.S. Army Black Rapids-Northern Warfare Training Center before launching a recovery mission, she said.
Contact staff writer Jeff Richardson at 459-7518.
