North Cascade National Park, Washington — Three climbers outside Seattle were killed in the fall at North Cascade National Park over the weekend, sheriffs said.
Sheriff’s staff and county search and rescue volunteers responded to the accident late Sunday morning in a rock formation area popular with mountaineers about 16 miles west of Mazama, the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office said in a social media post Monday.
A party of four climbers from Renton was involved in the fall, descending a steep gully in the north winter spire area. The post stated that three people, ages 36, 47 and 63, died at the scene.
The fourth suffered internal bleeding and traumatic brain damage in the fall, but he released himself and walked to the car to help with pay, Okanogan County Rep. David Yanell told the Seattle Times. The man was then taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
“He wasn’t aware that he had as significant internal injuries as he did,” Yanell said. His current status is unknown.
A helicopter rescue team from nearby Snohomish County helped recover the remains from the technical, mountainous regions.
The anchor’s failure while rappelling was the probable cause of the accident, Post said. An investigation is underway.
