A chairlift prank at a Southern California ski resort turned terrifying last week when a 21-year-old skier slid off her seat and found herself dangling 65 feet above the ground — saved only by her twin sister and a friend who refused to let go.
The incident occurred at approximately 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday (February 24) at Bear Mountain, part of Big Bear Mountain Resort in Big Bear Lake, California. Roula De Miranda-Arce, 21, was riding Chair 9 with her twin sister and a friend when she deliberately slid down from the moving chairlift, intending to briefly hang from the seat and scare her sister before pulling herself back up.
The plan fell apart immediately. The weight of her skis made it impossible for her to lift herself back onto the chair, and she was left suspended in midair as the lift continued moving uphill.
Video footage captured the terrifying scene — De Miranda-Arce hanging beneath the chair while her sister and friend gripped her arms tightly, keeping her from plummeting to the snow below.
“I thought I was going to die or become a paraplegic,” De Miranda-Arce said on Good Morning America. As the strain on her arms grew, she said she began screaming for the others to release her. “I was screaming at one point, ‘Just let me go,’ because it felt like my arms were going to break. And thank God my sister and my friend did not listen to me.”
The two companions held on for roughly two minutes until the chairlift reached the upper terminal, where ski patrol members were standing by. De Miranda-Arce was evaluated as a precaution and did not suffer significant injuries.
Big Bear Mountain Resort confirmed the incident in a statement, noting that the skier and her sister “admitted to horseplay as the reason for her becoming suspended.” The resort said staff acted quickly once they became aware of the situation, stopping the carrier and unloading all passengers as soon as the chair reached the top.
“It’s crazy what your body does in fight or flight,” De Miranda-Arce said of the harrowing experience.
The resort used the incident as an opportunity to remind guests to always lower the safety bar while riding lifts and to avoid dangerous behavior on the mountain.
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