- Aussie woman died at ski resort in Japan
- She became stuck on chair lift
An Australian woman has died in a gruesome accident at a ski resort in Japan.
Brooke Day, 22, was snowboarding when she became stuck on a chairlift at Tsugaike Mountain Resort in Otari, in the Nagano Prefecture, on Friday.
Tsugaike Mountain Resort chief executive Tsuneo Kubo said the lift buckle became tangled with her backpack while she was trying to get off.
Ms Day was dragged along as the lift turned in the opposite direction.
A worker pressed an emergency button, bringing it to a stop.
Ms Day is understood to have gone into cardiac arrest before she was rushed to hospital.
She was confirmed dead on Sunday.
A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokeswoman said the Day family was being provided with assistance.
Brooke Day (above) became stuck on a chairlift at Tsugaike Mountain Resort in Otari, Japan, on Friday
Tsugaike Mountain Resort (above) confirmed the incident and extended its condolences to Ms Day’s family
‘We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,’ she said.
‘Owing to our privacy obligations we are unable to provide further comment.’
Mr Kubo also extended his condolences to the ‘bereaved family’.
‘We will continue to fully cooperate with the police and related agencies in their investigations,’ he said.
Local police are investigating the incident and the resort has launched a safety review.
The fixed-grip chairlift is capable of transporting 1,000 people an hour and moves at 2.5m per second.
Ms Day had spent at least a year working at a physio clinic receptionist in Hakuba, about 8km south of the ski resort.
She described herself as a social person who enjoyed ‘getting to know the patients and making them feel welcome and seen’.
It’s understood the ski lift buckle became tangled with Ms Day’s backpack while she was trying to get off (resort ticket counter is pictured above)
Police and safety authorities are investigating the incident
Japanese media previously misnamed the Australian as Ella Day Brooke, which has since been amended to Brooke Day.
The incident comes just weeks after a young boy, 5, died at a ski resort when his arm became trapped in a magic carpet ski lift in northern Japan.
Japan has quickly become a favourite for Australian travellers, with visitor numbers rising.
More than one million went over in 2025, a 15 per cent jump compared to 2024.
More to come…
