A climber known for setting speed records in Yosemite National Park has died in a climbing accident in California. Jake Whisenant, 30, of Mammoth Lakes, died on Aug. 3, according to the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Coroner. The sheriff’s office website lists the cause of death as “accident” and officials have not released additional details. … Read more
Famed British Nepali climber Nirmal Purja has been confirmed dead after being swept away by an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak earlier this week, his expedition company said Saturday. “It is with profound sadness and immense heartbreak that we confirm that Nirmal Purja tragically lost his life following the avalanche on Broad Peak,” Purja’s company … Read more
Islamabad — Rescuers searching for 10 climbers missing after an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak located four bodies Friday and were continuing to search for the others despite adverse weather that hampered helicopter flights, officials said. Acclaimed British-Nepali climber Nirmal Purja was among the missing. Bad weather continued to hamper the search-and-rescue effort Friday, according … Read more
For three days, Nepali mountaineer Dawa Sherpa was trapped deep inside an Everest crevasse, surviving on biscuits, chocolates and chunks of ice, while back home his family had already begun mourning his death. Sherpa himself had nearly given up hope of rescue, until an avalanche thundered into the 25-foot deep ice crack, filling it with … Read more
A free climber dubbed the “Spider-Man of Yemen” died Friday after falling into a volcanic crater while demonstrating his skills. Al-Qaqa Ibn Antar, 30, was known for his risky climbing and acrobatic stunts, all carried out without ropes or harnesses. He was climbing Friday at the Hardah Dam crater near the city of Damt in … Read more
A Nepali mountaineer who spent six days dragging himself off Mount Everest after being abandoned has been moved out of intensive care as he slowly recovers, his family said Tuesday. The update came after the climber said from his hospital bed that he thought he would die on the world’s highest peak. His improbable survival … Read more
American climber Tyler Andrews set a new speed record using supplementary oxygen on Mount Everest on Thursday, his team told AFP, summiting the world’s highest peak an hour quicker than anyone before. Andrews, 36, climbed the 29,032-foot peak in just 9 hours and 55 minutes, shattering the record of 10 hours and 56 minutes held … Read more
An American climber has died in an avalanche on Mount Makalu, officials said Tuesday, as fatalities mount early in Nepal’s busy spring climbing season. Shelley Johannesen, 53, was killed on Monday while descending from the summit of the world’s fifth-highest peak, expedition organizers said, marking the season’s latest death. David Roubinek, a 38-year-old Czech climber, … Read more