FAIRBURY, Ill. — In a letter to the Prairie Central community, Superintendent Paula Crane asked everyone to keep the families of Dylan Bazzell and Drew Fehr in their prayers.
The Summit County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado says the two teens were riding on a sled down the half pipe when they launched off a large snowbank at Copper Mountain, fell hard on a patch of ice and died at the base of the mountain. They died from blunt force trauma, authorities said. Both were in Colorado for spring break.
“I can’t say enough about how our hearts go out to the families involved,” said Dustin Lyman, CEO and General Manager of Copper Mountain Resort.
“Sledding is strictly prohibited here at Copper Mountain. There’s designated zones on some of our milder terrain. But, on-mountain, after we’ve closed, there’s no sledding allowed. We’ve posted no sledding allowed, we’ve posted no sledding signs, and we do enforce it,” Lyman said.
Bazzell was recently named to the first team in The Associated Press All-State in Class 2A, and his father Darin is the Prairie Central’s head basketball coach. Fehr was also an outstanding athlete, having been named to the Class 3A All-State Football team.
The young men were getting ready for their final high school sports season, participating in track and field.
In her letter, the superintendent said students, staff, counselors, social workers and friends gathered at the Baptist Church in Fairbury to “grieve together and begin the healing process.”
“We realize that everyone grieves differently and would like to continue to support our students and staff during this heartbreaking time,” Crane said.
She said counselors will be available Tuesday at the Prairie Central High School library from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. More counseling time will be available if needed, Crane said.
