Friends and coworkers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston are planning a memorial for a pair of promising physicians who were killed in an avalanche north of Lake Louise earlier this month.
The couple was reported missing on Monday, March 13 after they failed to return to their hotel in Field B.C. after a day of snowshoeing.
A search was launched by RCMP and Parks Canada and signals from two avalanche beacons were picked up by crews who were able to pinpoint the couple's location.
Their bodies were found by two safety specialists on the slopes of Mount Hector but unstable weather conditions hampered recovery efforts for a few days.
The two snowshoers were brought down from the mountain on Friday, March 17 and they have been identified as Victor Fedorov and Lauren Zeitels, both 32, of Boston.
Fedorov and Zeitels were internal medicine residents in their second year at MGH and coworkers say they loved science, travel and experiencing new cultures.
“On behalf of the entire hospital, I offer my sincerest condolences to Victor’s and Lauren’s family members, colleagues and friends,” said Peter L. Slavin, MGH President, in a release.
Plans for a memorial service are still being finalized and two funds have been set up in their names to honour them; the Lauren Zeitels Memorial Pathways Fund and the Victor Fedorov Memorial Fund.
