From page 1 Maudsley and five other friends were heading to rinceton on.an overnight fishing trip when their 1986 GMC. Suburban suddenly veered off the road and lunged down a 300-foot cliff. "Maudsley left the mangled vehicle and joined his fel- W survivors to wait for help which arrived about half an our later. ; - ; “I lay down because I was in pain,” said Maudsley, “who suffered a cracked pelvis, : ‘opher Hahn, 20, Dale Johnson, 34, and Colin ‘McInnes, 16, all died in the accident. ‘> In addition to Maudsley, Andrew Hahn, 15, and Bill ‘ Hallock, 24, survived the crash. All three were eventual- ly transported to the Fraser Canyon Hospital in Hope. : Although police speculation initially blamed the acci- ~ dent on driver inattentiveness and inexperience, friends and relatives beg to differ, insisting Christopher Hahn ‘was a better than average driver. © “He knew that Suburban like the back of his hand,” id his brother Andrew, who doesn’t remember exacudy what happened in the seconds leading up to the acci- lent. “We were looking at the map, the next thing I know I woke up in the hospital.” * Andrew Hahn said his brother had also completed a a defensive driving course in the same Suburban. -. Maudsley and Hahn are both Sutherland secondary i students and have started planning a memorial to their fellow student Colin McInnes at the school. They have contacted some graffiti artists to paint the project and hope to have it finished soon. Andrew Hahn said his friend Colin was hoping to embark on a professional snowboarding career. ‘He was an inspiration to everyone he rode with,” said Hahn. a --. « James Watson, 16, is also a Sutherland student and a Mm . friend of the vehicle’s occupants. '. ¢“There’s nothing you can do to stop this from hap- ning,” said Watson, adding he and the survivors will wearing scatbelts from now on. From pagel ; She passed the blanket to Smorang aizeady on the run across By the kitchen to help the woman, a resident of the intermediate :, eae facility. “When I got there, her clothing and wheelchair were total- ly engulfed in flames,” said Smoran ig. “The flames were up to her neck. She looked like she was sit- - ting ina fireplace.” Smorang, 33, pulled the fire blanket out of the package on the way to the burning 80-year-old woman. “I just jumped on her and smothered her, trying to spank out all the flames,” he said. “But there were so (many), all around everywhere. They went up my arms. My pants caught on fire,” said Smorang. Smorang was trying to put out the flames and pul! the lady out of her wheelchair. , “I cculdn’t get her off on the first pull because her iegs were . NEWS photo Terry Peters UTHERLAND students mourning the death of thelr friends are, left to right, Jesse Brightman, Jason Maudsley, James Watson, Stacy Shannon and Andrew Hahn. Maudsley and Hahn were in the vehicle when It plunged down a 300-foot cliff, killing three of its occupants. sought by CHRISTOPHER Hahn (left) and Colin Mcinnes died in Saturday's car crash. None of the vehicle’s occupants were wearing seat- belts at the time of the crash. The survivors of the accident and their friends also expressed a sense of loss for the death of Johnson who, although he was nearly 20 years older, was “one of the best friends one could ever have. “It didn’t matter how old anyone was, he was always there,” said Watson. “He didn’t talk to you like a teenag- er, he talked to you like a friend.” Hope RCMP Highway Patrol Const. Bob Gledhill said the investigation into the accident is likely to go on for another month. So far few clues have been uncarthed to explain the cause of the accident. “A mechanical inspection failed to identify anything mechanical leading to the crash,” he added. A joint memorial service for all three grieving families will held tomorrow at Mount Seymour United Church, 1200 Parkgate, at 3 p.m. In lieu of flowers for the Hahn family, they request cash donations be made to Lower Mainland Search and Rescue units. melted to the chair. It took a second pull and I got her out,” said Smorang. this time, another co-worker Kathy Parkin arsived with a fire extinguisher and doused the whole room. Smorang had the senior in his arms with the blanket around her. “I couldn’t see for a minute so I didn’t want to move in case I tripped over something,” sai Smorang. The woman was put in another wheelchair and first aid was started. Smorang said firefighters and ambulance paramedics arrived a couple of minutes later. serious burns where she remained to press time. around and watch somebody burn to She was transported to Vancouver Hospital’s burn unit with Smorang received minor burns in the 11:30 a.m. fire. “J just did what had to be done. You can’t stand around and Friday, September 12, 1997 — North Shore News — 3 Pari Re jewelry hit | investigate Police seek three suspects in smash-and-grab robbery case By Anna Marie D'Angelo — = 3 “ib News Reporter dangelo@nsnews.com ONE robber pointed a gun at Swedish Jeweler staff while two others smashed display cases and scooped up jewelry. Tuesday's heist took just 30 seconds, said West Vancouver Police Staff Sgt. Barry Nickerson. The trio ran out of the Park Royal store, up an escalator and into a waiting black car. Nickerson said on Thursday that the value and details of items taken in the 10:30 a.m. robbery were still not known. The staff sergeant said that watches, rings and possibly necklaces were taken from the high-end jewelry store. “I think an element that comes into play is that if you are going to com- mit a planned robbery of significance, you are going to pick a high-end place,” said Nickerson. Witnesses in the south mall thought the trio were painters because of the white coveralls they wore. : The robbers put on gloves and ski masks before entering the jewelry store. Next door to Swedish Jeweler is Wear Else? clothing store for women. A Wear Else? staff member, who declined to be named, said she heard a toud banging sound coming from the side of their store which is adjacent to the jewelry store. ; She said one of the men in the white painter’s coveralls was smashing dis- play cases with what looked like a crowbar. She said the man repeatedly hit the display cases with extreme force in order to break the glass. The other robber ‘was standing behind him with a bag. She saw one of the jewelry store staff members calmly holding his hands up for the third robber. She did not see the-robber’s gun. No alarm could be heard. The clothing stére worker described what she saw as being “pretty bru- A robber points a gun as his accomplices go to joweiry cases. West Vancouver Police are looking, for three Asian males, ages 18 to 22 and an accomplice who drove the getaway car. The black car was possibly a Toyota Camry. Police say one of the robbers was cut seriously on his left hand, possibly in the palm or middle fingers. Staff Sgt. Nickerson said the robbers left a hammer, ski masks and gloves in the shopping malt. The same jewelry store was robbed in April and once last year, said Nickerson. He said police have suspects in the two previous robberies, which are ongoing investigations. He acknowledged that Swedish Jeweler was located in a “low traffic area” or quiet part of the mall. “There are numerous accesses and exits and that is a factor,” said Nickerson. The staff sergeant said investigators are checking out whether similar rob- beries were committed in the Vancouver area. Richmond News reporter Bob Mackin chronicled a robbery at Reg’s Diamond House approximately three weeks ago in which three Asian males armed with a handgun, hammer and machete made off with jewelry during an 11:20 a.m. heist. Anyone with information about the West Vancouver robbery can call 925-7300. Fire department lauds quick action watch somebody burn to death,” said Smorang. “A few more seconds and her head would have been on fire and that would have been it.” The fire started after lodge resident Margaret Johnson apparently fell asleep while smoking. Said Smorang, “I’ve put out fires before, but never people.” North Vancouver District Fire Services spokesman William Biela said that Smorang did an excellent job of acting quickly to smother the fire. He said the fire blanket was a good choice because of the need to smozher the flames. a “It’s a different situation when you are putting out a fire in: - a waste paper basket or an electrical appliance, buc when a per- 77 is on fire it’s a different story altogether,” said Biela. “I just did what had to be done. You can’t stand death.” — Bill Smorang