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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Topic Author's Original Post - Jun 16, 2012 - 08:42pm PT
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hey there, say all...
not sure if any of you know these folks... a japanese climbing team...
:(
http://news.yahoo.com/4-missing-climbers-presumed-dead-avalanche-190659092.html
n avalanche on Mount McKinley swept a Japanese climbing team off a hill as they tried to descend on a rope line, leaving four presumed dead. One climber survived after tumbling 60 feet into a crevasse.
U.S. National Park Service officials say five people were traveling as one rope team early Thursday morning as part of a Miyagi Workers Alpine Federation expedition on the Alaska mountain.
Park Service spokeswoman Maureen McLaughlin said Hitoshi Ogi, 69, survived the fall. He was able to climb out.
The other four fell into the avalanche debris and haven't been seen since. The climbers are presumed dead by either snow burial or injuries suffered in falls
you may want to check on folks, etc...
very sad to hear this...
(about 36 min agao, it said on link, that i just now, saw on yahoo)...
:(
edit... here are the names that they gave:
Ogi was the lowest person on the rope team. He looked for the other four but couldn't find them.
"He wasn't sure of all the events," McLaughlin said, adding that Ogi spoke through a translator and was exhausted.
The four missing climbers include 64-year-old Yoshiaki Kato, 50-year-old Masako Suda, 56-year-old Michiko Suzuki, and 63-year-old Tamao Suzuki
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 16, 2012 - 10:42pm PT
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hey there say, all....
i did not realize that there was a coninuation? for accidents on this mountain...
i had started this, so folks that may have known the ones climbing up here, at this time, could go and check on them...
not sure if there is any new notes on the climbers that it may be too late for :(
my concolences to the families that are going through this hard
situation... not sure how it has turned out...
:(
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Sagebrusher
Sport climber
Iowa
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Jun 18, 2012 - 04:33pm PT
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It'd be easier to find your thread if you spelled avalanche correctly.
Date: June 17, 2012
TALKEETNA, Alaska: A two-day ground search of the debris path from a fatal avalanche on Mt. McKinley has been suspended after clues were found confirming the likely location of four deceased climbers. Mr. Yoshiaki Kato, Ms. Masako Suda, Ms. Michiko Suzuki, and Mr. Tamao Suzuki of the Miyagi Workers Alpine Federation (MWAF) expedition are presumed to have died in the avalanche, while one team member, Mr. Hitoshi Ogi, survived the event with a minor hand injury.
The fatal avalanche happened at approximately 11,800-feet on the West Buttress, and was originally believed to have occurred early morning June 14. However NPS rangers have since confirmed with both Ogi and multiple teams on the mountain that the slide occurred during the early morning hours of Wednesday, June 13. Ogi first reported the event to NPS rangers when he arrived at the Kahiltna Basecamp the afternoon of June 14.
An aerial hasty search took place on June 14 followed by an initial four-member NPS ground search the following day. On Saturday, June 16, an expanded 10-person ground crew consisting of NPS rangers, volunteer patrol members, a dog handler, and a trained search and rescue dog probed and further investigated the debris zone. During the search, NPS mountaineering ranger Tucker Chenoweth descended into the same crevasse that the survivor Hitoshi Ogi had fallen into during the avalanche. While probing through the debris roughly 30 meters below the glacier surface, Chenoweth found a broken rope end that matched the MWAF team's rope. He began to dig further, but encountered heavily compacted ice and snow debris. Due to the danger of ice fall within the crevasse, it was decided to permanently suspend the recovery efforts.
There have six climbing fatalities on Mt. McKinley this season. Since 1932, a total of 120 climbers have perished on the mountain, 12 due to avalanches. This week's four avalanche fatalities were the first to occur on the popular West Buttress route.
http://www.nps.gov/dena/parknews/recoveryeffortsuspended.htm
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apogee
climber
Technically expert, safe belayer, can lead if easy
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Jun 18, 2012 - 04:39pm PT
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"The five-member Miyagi Workers Alpine Federation (MWAF) expedition was descending Motorcycle Hill near 11,800 feet at 2 a.m. last Thursday morning when an avalanche swept them all downhill....Hitoshi Ogi, 69 of Miyagi Prefecture, was swept into a crevasse and subsequently climbed out with minor injuries."
Motorcycle Hill? I've been there several times, and can't remember any significant cracks along the usual climbing route (though there are several surrounding it), even in late season. Wonder if these folks were on route?
Condolences, regardless.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2012 - 07:39pm PT
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hey there say, sagebrusher... thanks... :)
i do know how to spell it, but i have a few 'brain glitches'... i HAD typed it backwards, several times, and since my arm was recently aching, i let it slide for the best of 'how many' had 'gone before, :O :)
thank you for the new info, too...
:)
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fear
Ice climber
hartford, ct
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Jun 18, 2012 - 08:33pm PT
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When we were there in April 2000, there were several HUGE slots just starting to show about 1/2 up MH....
Really odd that MH lanched though.... Have they had enormous amounts of snow?
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Les
Trad climber
Bahston
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Jun 19, 2012 - 02:01pm PT
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Excerpted from Monday's NPS Morning Report:
"As of June 16th, there were 395 mountaineers attempting routes on Mt. McKinley, the majority on the West Buttress route. Out of the 630 climbers who have already returned from expeditions this season, 234 reported reaching the summit, equating to a 37% summit rate. Substantial snowfall and windy conditions in recent weeks have kept most climbers from reaching the top."
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Seamstress
Trad climber
Yacolt, WA
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Jun 19, 2012 - 02:14pm PT
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There were no open crevasses in that area last year at this time. From the pictures, yes the avalanch was on the route.
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