Back in January we saw Spanish snowboarder Alfons Garcia in a race against nature, with an avalanche barrelling down the slopes behind him.

Thankfully he managed to outrun that one, but Frenchman Thomas Kray wasn’t so lucky.

He was engulfed by an avalanche whilst boarding down a mountain in the French Alps, and caught the whole thing on his helmet cam.

You can only imagine the panic he felt as he watched that crack lengthen and the slide begin, but this one has a happy ending.

First up, the video itself:

Kray’s video is now being shared far and wide as an example of how a ‘safety airbag’, also known as an ‘avalanche airbag’, can save a life.

Here’s SacBee:

Kray told The Sacramento Bee via Facebook Messenger that he was sharing the video to highlight the importance of having proper safety equipment while snowboarding or skiing. He credits the airbag, helmet and back protection for saving him from serious injury or death.

“I think the avalanche airbag as well as the helmet and back protection all together (helped),” Kray said. “The airbag let me stay afloat while the protections prevented any collision.”

Here’s a video from last year, showing what an avalanche airbag looks like:

You want an avalanche airbag compilation? Sure, no problem:

Our work here is done.

[source:sacbee]