Family pays tribute to ‘special girl’ aged 10 who died in skiing accident

Jemima Prees died after hitting a tree at high speed while skiing in the Austrian Alps on a half term holiday with her family. The schoolgirl, who was wearing a helmet, appeared to lose control and skied into a wooded off-piste area at the Mayrhofen resort near Tyrol on Sunday, Austrian police said.

Her brother and father rushed to her side to give first aid before she was airlifted to hospital in Innsbruck, but she died the following day.

Her family, from Colerne near Chippenham, Wiltshire, said she was skiing within her ability and was “taking it very carefully” before the accident.

In a statement they said: “Jemima was a very, very special girl. She lived every day as if there might be no tomorrow.

“She had a capacity to touch people with love in a way that is rarely seen. It was a privilege to know her for nearly 11 years.

“She was quirky, intelligent, 
fearless, but most of all, always warm and amusing. Everyone loved her. We were so lucky to have shared so much time with her.”