Retired GP from Northumberland dies in skiing tragedy in the Swiss Alps

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A retired GP from Northumberland has tragically died in a skiing accident in the Swiss Alps.

Pippa Wallis, from Lesbury, near Alnwick, was skiing off-piste with a party and guide near Grimentz when she fell and became buried in deep snow.

The 64-year-old suffered a cardio-respiratory arrest and resuscitation was unsuccessful despite the best efforts of local rescue services.

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No other skier was directly involved in the accident, which happened last Tuesday morning.

Pippa Wallis.Pippa Wallis.
Pippa Wallis.

Efforts are now being made to bring Pippa, known to her patients as Dr Philippa Harris, back to the UK.

Her husband, Jonathan, 71, said: “We were skiing together as part of a group. We were off-piste and fresh snow had fallen overnight but it wasn’t a difficult slope and she was a very competent skier.

"We were skiing down the hill and I was last in the group to get to the stopping point. When I couldn’t see her I looked back up the hill and saw her about 50m above us. I thought something was wrong so I started climbing which was difficult in the deep snow. Our guide joined me too.

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"I didn’t know how long she had been there and when we got to her you could tell she was in a bad way. We pulled her out on to the hill and I thought she would then take a few deep breaths and come to but she didn’t."

Pippa Wallis.Pippa Wallis.
Pippa Wallis.

Medical help arrived and a rescue helicopter was called but she died at the scene.

"She died in my arms,” said Jonathan, who spoke out to clarify the circumstances following recent media reports of other skiing accidents.

“The only uncertainties in my mind are whether we could have saved her if we’d been quicker and perhaps what triggered the cardio arrest,” added Jonathan, a retired consultant haematologist who worked at Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital.

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Pippa had been a GP in Bedlington and Whickham until retirement.

The couple, who have four children and two grandchildren, moved to Lesbury in 2019 and played an active part in the local community, most notably through their love of sailing which included membership of Coquet Yacht Club.

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