Breaking: Famed Polish Climber Piotr Morawski Killed In Climbing Accident On Dhaulagiri

Piotr Morawski, one of Poland’s rising star climbers, has been tragically killed in a crevasse fall on Dhaulagiri.  Piotr was taking part in an exciting expedition that was hoping to open up a new route on Manaslu’s West Face this year.  Dhaulagiri was a training climb for Manaslu.

From ExplorersWeb:

The worst possible news broke earlier today from Dhaulagiri: At 8.40 am local time this morning, Polish Piotr Morawski fell to his death in a crevasse while returning from C2. At only 33, Piotr had summited six 8000ers, and made the first winter summit on Shisha Pangma (together with Simone Moro in January, 2005).

Piotr Morawski was a current member of the Himalayan Trilogy team led by Piotr Pustelnik.

Piotr fell into a 20 meter deep crevasse while navigating from Camp 2 to Camp 1 on Dhaulagiri.  Two climbers that Piotr was with, plus members of another Dhaulagiri Polish expedition, The Tatra Rescuers Association, helped to pull Morawski from the crevasse.  Dr. Mazik, the expedition doctor, confirmed that Piotr Morawski had perished in the fall.

You can read more by clicking through to ExplorersWeb.

Rafael Guillen Dies on Dhaulagiri

Reports are still a bit sketchy on this incident, but reports are beginning to come out that Rafael Guillen, a Spanish climber with the Himalaya Maestrat Expedition on Dhaulagiri, has suffered a tragic fall while trying to help a teammate to safety.

From ExWeb:

While details are still sketchy, it seems Rafael fell to his death while helping down team mate Jesús Morales. Rafael had turned around during the team’s summit bid on May 1, while Jesus pushed on and eventually summited together with an Argentinean climber. On descent, Jesús showed symptoms of frostbite/hypothermia, so Rafael ran to meet him and help him down, while sending an SOS call to another team mate, David Ferrer, who was at a lower camp after having renounced to attempt the summit.

David climbed up, only to find Rafael’s body - who apparently had slipped down a slope. There are no details on the Argentinean climber’s whereabouts, neither has his name been made official.

Climbers on Dhaulagiri made a recent mad push for the summit after a slight weather window appeared to open up. Close to a dozen climbers made it to the top, but then bad weather descended making hazardous work of retreating to the higher camps.

Let’s keep his team, family, friends, and associates in our thoughts as they try to deal will this past weekends tragic event.

Sources: The Adventure Blog, ExplorersWeb

Many Summits on Dhaulagiri in Storm Conditions

Many climbers have made the summit on Dhaulagiri today–others have been forced back due to storm conditions. Most that have made the summit are back to Camp 3, but others are still fighting through the weather to make to safe ground. This is a pretty dangerous situation right now. Climbers have reported cold, windy conditions along with a lightening storm as they made their summit bids. Winds in excess of 40 km/h are being reported on the summit. As we all know, the summit is only half the journey…

A list of today’s summits thus far:

1. Ivan Vallejo (Ecuador)
2. Ferran Latorre (Spain)
3. Nacho Orviz (Spain)
4. Edurne Pasaban
5. Asier Izaguirre
6. Alex Txicon
7. Muptu Sherpa
8. Carlos Pauner
9. Marta Alejandre
10. Kinga Baranowska

More summits have been made, but not confirmed. Some climbers are still fighting their way towards the higher camps from the summit. It is being reported from ExWeb that climbers and expedition leaders are watching the headlamps of those heading back down. One of the climbers still out there–Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner–could achieve her 11th 8,000 meter peak.

Let’s hope the rest make it down to Camp 3 safely. You never know what’s going to happen in these harsh conditions. I will keep you updated as we learn more

The Adventurist: A Call to All Outdoor Writers and Photographers!

I have just put the finishing touches on a new “Submit & Contact” Page here at The Adventurist.  I am hoping that this new feature will be accepted and used by all of my great readers.

This page goes into detail about a few things I am looking for here at The Adventurist–and ways you might be able to get involved.

Do you love Adventure Writing or perhaps Great Outdoors Photography?–Help me share your incredible talents with a much bigger audience!

Head on Over to the “Submit & Contact” Page, found on a tab right up above this article, and Share your Adventures with the World!

Also, if you are looking to put me to work, there is info there as well….

Cheers-

J. Alan Hendricks, Editor

Massive Summit Push For Broad Peak is a Success!!

 

Trying to outrun an approaching storm system on Broad Peak, many climbers combined their efforts yesterday for one final push–landing them on the summit!

The Broad Peak summit was reached at 12:30 pm local time by the “Al Filo” Team and members are now trying to race down the mountain in a speed descent to try to reach Camp 3 before nightfall.

The successful summiters on Broad Peak include:

• Silvio “Gnaro” Mondinelli
• Marco Confortola
• Ivan Vallejo
• Gerlinde Kaltenbruner
• Ralf Dujmovits
• Fabio Iacchini
• Edurne Pasaban
• as well as others that are awaiting verification.

Over 70 people took off yesterday for this massive summit push, making there way through very cold tempertures and rising winds.

Silvio Mondinelli Bags 14th 8,000 Meter Peak

With Silvio’s successful summit of Broad Peak, he now becomes the 13th person in the world to land on top of the 14 tallest peaks. He also becomes the sixth person to do so without the use of supplemental O2 along his journey.  Two other Italians, Reinhold Messner and Sergio Martini have also mastered the 14 8,000 meter peaks.

Two More Closing In

Ivan Vallejos and Ralf Dumojvits have both been to Broad Peak before, but each of them stand a pretty good chance of accomplishing their respective goals of reaching the tops of all 14 8,000 meter peaks as well.  Ivan Vallejos now only needs Dhauligiri to complete his quest and Dumojvits is currently standing at 10 peaks.

Women Closing in as Well

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, the leading lady on the quest for 14 8,000 meter peaks has made Broad Peak her tenth.  Edurne Pasaban is sitting one below with 9 at this momment.

Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, the crafty Austrian, has accomplished her 10 successful summits without any supplementary O2.  She is married to the previously mentioned Ralf Dujmovits and between them now own 22 8,000 meter summits.

A Little Broad Peak History

Broad Peak stands at 26, 400 feet and measures up as the 12th highest peak in the world and the fourth highest in Pakistan.  It was originally labeled K3, and sits along the Pakistan-China Border.  It’s first ascent came on June 9, 1957 by Fritz Wintersteller, Marcus Schmuck, Kurt Diemburger, and Hermann Buhl, all members of an Austrian Expedition put together by Marcus Schmuck.

Hermann Buhl and Kurt Diemburger were subsequently killed 18 days later while trying to ascend a nearby peak, Chogolisa on June 27, 1957.

BREAKING NEWS: DHAULAGIRI AVALANCHE CLAIMS RICARDO VALENCIA AND SANTIAGO SAGASTE, TWO OTHERS SURVIVE

ExplorersWeb has posted that Ricardo Valencia and Santiago Sagaste were killed today in an avalanche on Dhaulagiri.

The avalanche occured at Camp 2 as the spanish expedition, the only expedition still at Dhaulagiri, were waiting out a storm at Camp 2 to proceed to the summit–

The Avalanche swept down as Valencia and Sagaste were in their tents waiting out the storm. 

Two other members of the Spanish Expedition, Javi Serrano and Austrian Gerlinde Kaltenbruner survived the ordeal in their tents only a couple of meters away but did lose all of their climbing gear and supplies in the process.

Serrano and Kaltenbruner were helped down Dhaulagiri by two more spanish expedition team members that were stationed at Camp 1.

The team had launched a bid for the summit on Friday but got caught in a storm and were in the process of waiting it out before they proceeded.

The Adventurist would like to offer it’s condolences to the family, friends, and associates of these two lost climbers.  Our Prayers are with you tonight and in the coming days.

More Details of Sergio Della Longa’s Death on Dhaulagiri

EverestNews has recieved a letter from a teammate of Sergio Della Longa’s about his tragic death on Dhaulagiri April 30.

This letter is very heartbreaking.  In part, Sergio was within 100 meters of the famed Dhaulagiri summit, climbing alongside his wife, when he slipped and fell, hitting his head upon a rock that killed him instantly.

The rest of the letter goes in to detail about Sergio’s wife and her fight to stay on the mountain with him–even with hands that were frostbitten black. 

Sergio’s team was finally able to coax her down, giving up their summit attempts in the process.

It is a very hard account of what happens when things go wrong so fast.  I suggest all of you read this today and keep his family and teammates in your prayers.

David Sharp HAD to Die on Everest

People die on Mt. Everest.  That is a fact.  In fact until the last few years the statistic was that for every four people to make the summit, one would die.  In recent times (the 2007 Everest climbing season involves close to 1,000 individuals) that number has grown to one in twenty.

Last season brought the tragic death of David Sharp and the controversy of climbers not helping a fellow climber in need to the forefront of media institutions around the world.  Perhaps this is because people never  really knew what went on at 28,000 ft. or they never really thought about it until the media picked up the story.

I am not going to go in to detail on what happened to David Sharp.  By now the world over knows this story and  a year later it still lingers in the minds and bemoans an outpouring of controversy.  Everyone has an opinion.  I will leave it at that.

What I would like to mention is that David Sharp has not been the only climber to be left behind.  It has happened before and more than likely it will happen again.  Read more

Dhaulagiri Claims Life of Italian Climber Sergio Dalla Longa

ExplorersWeb is reporting the tragic news today that Italian Climber Sergio Dalla Longa has perished on Dhaulagiri.

The accident occured Sunday, April 29, 2007, after Sergio had climbed within meters of the famed Dhaulagiri summit.  He slipped on the icy surface and subsequently hit his head in the fall resulting in his death.

Sergio Dalla Longa was climbing with a team led by Mario Merelli.

Details of the accident are finally beginning to trickle through the Italian Press.

Merelli’s Italian team had split in to two groups and was opting for a summit bid Sunday.  Dalla Longa was a member of the first group along with Stephano Magri.

A few meters from the Dhaulagiri Summit, Sergio Dalla Longa’s crampon had slipped and in the ensuing fall, he hit his head and neck killing him instantly.

Sergio Dalla Longa’s brother, Marco, also perished while climbing Nanda Devi in 2005. 

Sergio’s tragic death, brings the number to 4 of climber’s whose deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours.  You may read about the other three, in the two previous posts found under this one.

As always with a death in the climbing community, The Adventurist website has switched from it’s normal blue color, to black in a sign of mourning and respect to our fallen brothers and sisters, for the next three days.

Our hearts and prayers go out to Sergio Dalla Longa’s family, friends and associates on this tragic event, as well as to the other three climbers lost in the past 24 hours.

Dhauligiri Summiter, Jorge Egocheaga, Evacuated from Basecamp

The Second Dhauligiri Summiter this season, Jorge Egocheaga, has been medically evacuated from Dhauligiri Basecamp.  His evacuation came about after he was hit by an avalanche and subsequently fell into a crevasse while descending.

The Avalanche and the fall into the crevasse wasn’t the reason for the Medic Evac though.  It seems that during his journey down Dhauligiri, Egocheaga recieved a pretty bad case of frostbite.

His partner and the First summiter of Dhauligiri this season, Inaki Ochoa, is also suffering from a much lesser case of frostbite as well.

For more on this story, head on over to ExplorersWeb.  Ochoa talks about their conditions and the subsequent medical Evacuation of his partner Jorge Egocheaga.

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