United States Ski Accident Statistics

DENVER - March 3, 2020 - PRLog -- In the United States, snow sports have sky rocketed in popularity, with about 10 million snow sports participants during the 2018 and 2019 season.

During the 2018/2019 season, 37 states had operating ski areas, providing for 476 ski areas across the United States. As for the most popular states for skiing, it comes as no surprise that Colorado, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New York provide the majority of the ski areas in the country. With their cold climate and mountain terrains, these states provide the perfect place for skiing, with Colorado and Wisconsin containing 31 ski areas, Michigan containing 43 areas, and New York containing 51 ski areas.

HOW COMMON ARE SNOW SPORTS INJURIES?

Given the increasing popularity in snow sports every year, the chances of suffering a catastrophic injury while skiing is likely to increase as well. According to the National Ski Areas Association, a catastrophic ski injury may include:

• Injuries with significant neurological trauma
• Major head injuries
• Spinal cord injuries resulting in full or partial paralysis
• Injuries resulting in the loss of a limb

There were a total of 31 catastrophic injuries reported during the 2018/2019 winter season. The majority of which resulted from collisions with the snow surface, stationary objects, or other skiers. Additionally, of the 31 catastrophic accidents that occurred during the 2018/2019 season:

• 90% of the accidents involved males, a majority of which were males under 30 on intermediate terrain
• 20% of those injured were not wearing a helmet

HOW COMMON ARE SNOW SPORTS FATALITIES

According to the National Ski Areas Association, over the past 10 years, skiers are fatally injured at a rate of .69 per one million participants. During the 2018/2019 season, there were 42 reported fatal incidents, the majority of which resulted from collisions with other skiers, the snow surface, or trees. Of these 42 reported fatal incidents during the 2018/2019 season:

• 95% were male
• 26% were not wearing a helmet

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