For the first time in its 17-year history, skiers and snowboarders had to be removed from Mount Sima's chairlift Saturday, the opening day of its 2010/2011 season.

Craig Hougen, president of the Great Northern Ski Society (which oversees the hill's operations), said this morning the double chair lift was stopped briefly at 2:28 p.m. to help a young skier get on the chair, a situation that's fairly routine at the hill.

When staff went to restart the lift, it wouldn't run on the electrical feed that serves as the main power supply. Attempts to start up on the backup diesel system were also unsuccessful and at 2:43 p.m., the evacuation was called.

"It's never failed,” Hougen said of the diesel backup system.

Along with the Sima and ski patrol volunteers who were called on to assist -–including 10 who weren't at the hill at the time responding to the call – Whitehorse firefighters were also on the scene, part of Sima's procedures in such situations. The evacuation began at 2:53 p.m.

"Safety supersedes everything,” Hougen said, repeating a number of times that the hill won't reopen until officials have a full understanding of exactly what happened and why, and a solution is in place.

While officials are working on those matters now, on Saturday the focus was on getting what was essentially a full lift of skiers safely to ground level.

At a total of 185 chairs, half going up hill, a full lift would have about 180 skiers.

Hougen praised all those involved in the rescue. They included one off-duty RCMP officer who is also an expert in climbing, for the professional work in getting everyone to safety with no major problems.

Rescuers climbed the towers, placing a rope that has a guard over the cable. A safety strap was attached to the skier or snowboarder before they put a T-bar type seat between their legs and slipped from the chair to the T-bar style seat that was then lowered to the ground.

"It's actually fairly anti-climatic,” Hougen said of the situation, noting a few of the kids on the lift were "whooping and hollering” as they were lowered.

While not everyone was as enthusiastic as some of the kids in coming down to ground level, Hougen said, he didn't see or hear of anyone having any problems during the rescue.

There were a few tears by some younger skiers and snowboarders suffering from the tingly fingers and toes that come from being outside for longer periods.

Blankets, hot chocolate and coffee were all offered in the chalet as skiers and snowboarders came in.

There were also a few cases where those on the lift had taken off some of their warmer layers earlier in the day because it was so warm, only to find themselves cold as they waited to be rescued.

As Hougen noted though, this incident will no doubt have Mount Sima visitors rethinking what they wear when they get on the lift from now on.

Though skiers/snowboarders weren't prioritized into who would be rescued first, Hougen noted that had anyone been dealing with major problems from being outside, they would have.

"Everyone was really positive,” he said, again noting how efficiently and safely staff and volunteers got people off the lift and assisted at the bottom of the hill.

Most of those rescued were just pleased to get off the chairlift. Hougen himself was on the lift for two hours before he was lowered to ground level.

It shows how important all that pre-season training that's been happening for staff and volunteers over Sima's 17-year history is, he said.

Making things even more difficult for the rescuers was the deep, soft snow that skiers had been enjoying earlier in the day.

"It was tough,” Hougen said.

As he pointed out, it's quite rare for a ski hill to go 17 years without a manual evacuation from the lift.

While skiers and snowboarders returned home after their ordeal, staff at the hill had some time there to unwind at the end of the evening, talking of their experience.

"It was pretty emotional,” Hougen said of staff realizing just what they had down.

"It's a really positive story,” he said.

With everyone safe on the ground, the work has now started to see what the problem was.

Officials with the hill suspect it may have been a safety feature on the lift that led to the problem. The lift is programmed, for example, not to start in cases where it has gone back a few inches. That feature may have caused an interference with the diesel system.

The diesel system is tested each week and had been used throughout the summer mountain biking season at the hill, Hougen pointed out.

The exact cause has to be confirmed. Officials are in contact today with those from Seattle who installed the system. If it's deemed necessary, they will make the trip from the U.S. to work on it, Hougen said.

Management at the hill, the board and representatives from the emergency response community will also be debriefing and looking at what might be done differently to improve on their procedures.

While the evacuation was done very well, Hougen said anytime there's a rescue, there are always improvements that can be made and staff are already looking at some.

For those who bought full or half-day passes to the hill Saturday, refunds were and are being offered to those who ask, though only a few have come forward so far, he said.

As Hougen looks toward the rest of the season, he said he doesn't expect Saturday's drama to have a major impact, with many recognizing this as such a rare occurrence that was dealt with properly.

"We have enormous community support,” Hougen said, referring to the hill as part of the fabric of Whitehorse benefiting it in a number of ways.

Up until the chair lift failed Saturday, Sima was enjoying a record opening day attendance, with more than 550 people on the hill to take in the warm temperatures and deep snow base.

"It was just a rockin' day until about 2:30 (p.m.),” Hougen commented.

While it's hoped the hill will reopen again for Thursday, Hougen said that won't be known until later in the week, with information to be updated on Sima's website (www.mountsima.com) and through the Snow Line at 667-7547.