Skiing starts at Sunset Park today; resort discredits Facebook posting

Sunrise Park Resort officials are investigating whether a former employee posted on its official Facebook page that the resort would not be opening today.

The post read “Sunrise Park Resort is closed until further notice. Effective December 13, 2017.”

The White Mountain Apache Tribe owns the ski resort in Greer. Tribe spokeswoman Gwen Dena Lee-Gatewood was quick to discredit the Facebook post. The resort’s opening day is still today, she said.

“Sunrise Park Resort did not shut down,” Lee-Gatewood said. “There was management changes yes, but not shut down. Despite what happened, business is business and must move forward.”

She said that three employees in management positions were let go on Wednesday.

Other employees will be expected to report to work as usual.

She said she is currently contacting anyone with access to the resort’s Facebook account and that it appears to have been done in a “vicious” move.

The Facebook post initially appeared before 6 p.m. and remained online as of 9 p.m. Lee-Gatewood said the resort would update the Facebook post soon with accurate information, but first needed to contact the resort’s information-technology department.

“We apologize for any convenience,” Lee-Gatewood said. “It is less than pleasing that this blast went out.”