Death in the Tetons

The Teton Range, located in the Rocky Mountains, is prone to sudden whiteout conditions that can disorient skiers enough that they lose their way. To help prevent this, ski resorts have clearly labeled trails, and the region boasts two separate Search and Rescue organizations plus the Grand Targhee Ski Patrol.

None of these helped Eddie "Cola" Fitzgerald in the last hours of his life.

An experienced skier, Eddie had much going for him. Eddie, diagnosed with hyperactivity and ADHD at age seven and possibly a high-functioning autistic, overcame these obstacles to succeed academically, professionally, and personally. But instead of fulfilling his bright future, he died of hypothermia in an alpine meadow in South Leigh Canyon.

Eddie's death raises questions that demand answers. Why did the ski resort remove ropes designed to prevent one from descending into South Leigh Canyon? How did three rescue teams fail to find him, despite three 911 calls from the lost skier providing location information?

Based on the true story of Eddie Fitzgerald's death, Death in the Tetons is a retelling that includes facts and actual legal depositions by those involved-all of which reveal the tragic sequence of events that robbed a man of his life.