A Japanese climber is believed to have died after falling into a crevice near Mount Hunter in Denali National Park in Alaska, an official from the park said.
The 43-year-old climber who is now believed to have died, was said to have slipped from his teammates when he fell into the ice fissure, as a result of the ice bridge collapsing, according to CBS News.
Employees at the park were notified of the fall Tuesday night, said in one official statement. Together with the complainant, two mountain rangers went skiing back to the crash site. Moments later, a mountaineer jumped into the gap, but confirmed that the collapse of the ice bridge had filled the narrow gap with ice and snow.
– Climbers are assumed to have died based on fall height, duration and volume of ice and snow. The possibility of taking the bodies will be investigated in the next few days, the national park wrote in a statement.
At the same time that news of Japan arrived, the park was able to confirm they had found the body of a solo Austrian climber, believed to have died earlier this month.
He is presumed dead atop Mount Denali, America’s highest peak at 6,194 meters above sea level. However, the mountain was renamed Denali in 2015, and is probably better known to many as Mount McKinley. His body was found by helicopter.
His last known conversation was with friends on April 30, when he was reportedly tired but not in trouble.
