In Alaska, mountaineering rangers have successfully recovered the body of a Seattle mountaineer who tragically fell 3,000 feet from a climbing route on Mount McKinley. This incident occurred during an expedition on the challenging West Buttress route, an area many climbers are familiar with.
Alex Chiu’s body was safely transported to the state’s medical examiner on Wednesday, according to a statement from Denali National Park and Preserve. The fateful event was reported on Monday by two fellow expedition members, who were climbing alongside Chiu when he fell from a section known as Squirrel Point. Despite lowering themselves over the edge to the greatest extent possible, they could neither see nor hear Chiu. Crucially, he was not using a safety rope at the time of the fall.
The search effort for Chiu faced delays as both ground crews and aerial teams couldn’t reach the rugged site until Wednesday morning.
This is not the first tragedy on this part of the mountain; in 2010, an unroped French climber also fell near Squirrel Point and, unfortunately, his body was never retrieved.
Mount McKinley, standing as North America’s tallest peak, sees its busiest climbing season during the months of May and June. Presently, around 500 climbers are attempting to summit this majestic and strenuous mountain.