Latest news with #AlexChiu
Daily Mail
12-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Tragedy after skier, 29, triggered avalanche while descending America's tallest mountain
A 29-year-old skier died on America's highest mountain after triggering an avalanche while trying to descend its treacherous peak. Nicholas Vizzini, from Washington state, was with an unnamed climbing partner on Tuesday when they accidentally caused the crisis on Mount McKinley at over 16,000 feet, officials said. The Alaskan mountain, previously known as Denali before it was renamed earlier this year by President Trump, was the subject of an intensive search after the two became trapped under heavy snow. According to officials from the Denali National Park and Preserve rangers responded to the mountain within minutes after Vizzini's partner was spotted in debris from the avalanche. Rangers were then able to detect a beacon signal to find Vizzini, who was found buried under the debris. Despite lifesaving efforts from first responders, he was pronounced dead on Tuesday evening and his body was transferred to the state medical examiner's office. His partner sustained only minor injuries. The skiers death is the second recorded on Mount McKinley this year, after Alex Chiu, 33, also lost his life on the mountain earlier this month. Chiu, originally from Seattle, reportedly died after falling over 3,000 feet on the mountain's steep West Buttress climbing route, the same route where Vizzini died on Tuesday. The avalanche that killed Vizzini is known as a 'soft slab' avalanche, where soft, powdery debris typically from recent storms is sent down the mountain face. Officials said the avalanche released at over 16,000 feet and released for over 1,000 feet down the slope. Rangers were able to find Vizzini so quickly because two were already on the mountain face for an altitude acclimatization climb. When the rangers found him, they reportedly continued lifesaving measures for forty minutes before he was pronounced dead. The park service said they were discontinued 'due to traumatic injuries and no pulse.' The deaths of Vizzini and Chui mark a dark start to Mount McKinley's climbing season, which typically begins in May and ends in early July. 'There have been approximately 13 avalanche-related deaths and more than 130 total deaths on the mountain recorded in the history of the park,' the park service said in a statement after Vizzini's death. On the West Buttress route where the two men died this month, a total of 15 climbers have died since 1980, National Park Service spokesperson Amber Smigiel told USA TODAY. The park added that the mountain remains open, and there are currently an estimated 500 people on Mount McKinley.
Daily Mail
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Mountaineer suffers devastating 3,000-foot plunge to his death from America's tallest mountain
A ski mountaineer from New York suffered a devastating 3,000-foot drop to his death off America's tallest mountain. Alex Chiu, 41, was climbing the West Buttress of Alaska 's Mount McKinley, formerly Denali, 'un-roped' with two others on Monday when he fell from Squirrel Point. Chiu fell toward the Peters Glacier, an exposed rocky 3000-foot face, where his body was found two days later, according to the Denali National Park Service. Those with him witnessed Chiu fall, and attempted to scale as far down the face as possible but were unable to hear or see the mountaineer. The pair then descended the route for help, but high winds and snow kept rescuers from reaching Chiu until Wednesday morning. Chiu had recently moved back to New York City in 2023, according to an Instagram post. The mountaineer had posted about his trip to Denali prior to the tragic accident, including packing, their flight to Alaska and cooking with friends. A friend of Chiu's, James Lee, told the New York Times that Chiu handled other climbs before his fateful last. 'Alex was a well known and valued member of the Seattle climbing community,' Lee said. 'He introduced many people to mountaineering and rock climbing and could be found mountaineering, skiing or rock climbing on most weekends.' Chiu said on Instagram that he had stopped much of his climbing following the pandemic, but had started his return to the sport. 'So, tomorrow I am getting on an airplane to Alaska, in an attempt to climb the third highest peak in the world because I don't want to know what happens to a dream deferred,' he wrote. His latest post on May 19 was flooded with comments of love and remembrance. One wrote: 'My heart is broken. You will be so missed Alex. You are such a light. You touched every single person you encountered.' 'Thanks for being such an amazing light and energy Alex. You were always so positive and supportive. Will miss you bud,' another said. One commenter wrote: 'One of the most adventurous, sweet, passionate souls to ever grace the world of extreme sports. Alex was bold and brave, with the kindest heart- full of love for friends, family, and adventure.' Chiu wrote on his last post: 'I had become an Alpinist, a mountain climber specializing in high and difficult ascents. I slowly realized I was living my dream every single weekend, I could do this every single weekend...'
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Yahoo
Experienced climber dies after 3,000-foot plummet from North America's highest peak
A Seattle man died after falling 3,000 feet from a climbing route at Denali National Park in Alaska, the National Park Service said Wednesday. Alex Chiu, 41, was ascending the West Buttress route of Mount McKinley on Monday, June 2, one of the park's most frequently climbed routes, while not attached to a rope, the agency said in a statement. He was ski mountaineering, which involves ascending and descending the route with skis. He was joined by two others in his expedition to conquer North America's highest peak. Two others witnessed his fall onto the rocky face covered in jagged ice, and lowered themselves over the edge as far as they could, but they could not see or hear him after the fall, officials said. Alaska Man Survives Being Pinned Face-down By 700-Pound Boulder In Creek After Help From His Wife The mountaineers descended the route to ask for assistance at Camp 1, which is located around 7,800 feet up the mountain. Read On The Fox News App Due to high winds and snow, ground and air search teams were unable to quickly reach the area where he had fallen on Monday. On Wednesday, clear weather allowed two rangers to depart Talkeetna, a village south of the mountain, in a helicopter search for Chiu. When his body was found, it was transferred to the state medical examiner, the agency said. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Alaska State Medical Examiner's Office for Chiu's official cause of death. Chiu was an aerospace engineer at the Federal Aviation Administration and, before that, a software engineer at Boeing, according to his LinkedIn profile. On his social media accounts, he described himself as a storyteller, traveler, scuba diver, rock climber, alpinist and marathon runner. He wrote on his Instagram account about how living in Seattle allowed him to take his ice-climbing tools to the mountains every weekend. He shared that following the daily grind of his 9-to-5, he would pack up his gear and head to the mountains. "I had become so good at what I did that I started teaching others how to do it, and that was even more fun to teach others how to experience the joy you have in these wild places," he wrote in an Instagram post. "When I am in the mountains, I realize I was at my best. I was smart, witty, passionate, and bold." Fatal Fall In Washington's North Cascades Kills 3, Leaves 1 Survivor The pandemic put the brakes on his alpine climbs, but he dreamed of heading back to the climb. "So tomorrow I am getting on an airplane to Alaska," he wrote in an Instagram post on May 19, "in an attempt to climb the third-highest peak in the world because I don't want to know what happens to a dream deferred." The busiest season on the mountain lasts from mid-May to mid-June; there were about 500 climbers on it Wednesday, the agency said. Chiu is one of several people who have died while climbing Mount McKinley or other areas of Denali National Park. In April 2024, 52-year-old Robbi Mecus, of Keene Valley, New York, fell to his death while climbing an estimated 1,000 feet off Mount Johnson in the national park. The NPS said that a similar accident happened in 2010, in a similar location. That incident involved an unroped French mountaineer, who fell to his death on the Peters Glacier. His body was never article source: Experienced climber dies after 3,000-foot plummet from North America's highest peak
Fox News
06-06-2025
- Fox News
Experienced climber dies after 3,000-foot plummet from North America's highest peak
A Seattle man died after falling 3,000 feet from a climbing route at Denali National Park in Alaska, the National Park Service said Wednesday. Alex Chiu, 41, was ascending the West Buttress route of Mount McKinley on Monday, June 2, one of the park's most frequently climbed routes, while not attached to a rope, the agency said in a statement. He was ski mountaineering, which involves ascending and descending the route with skis. He was joined by two others in his expedition to conquer North America's highest peak. Two others witnessed his fall onto the rocky face covered in jagged ice, and lowered themselves over the edge as far as they could, but they could not see or hear him after the fall, officials said. The mountaineers descended the route to ask for assistance at Camp 1, which is located around 7,800 feet up the mountain. Due to high winds and snow, ground and air search teams were unable to quickly reach the area where he had fallen on Monday. On Wednesday, clear weather allowed two rangers to depart Talkeetna, a village south of the mountain, in a helicopter search for Chiu. When his body was found, it was transferred to the state medical examiner, the agency said. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Alaska State Medical Examiner's Office for Chiu's official cause of death. Chiu was an aerospace engineer at the Federal Aviation Administration and, before that, a software engineer at Boeing, according to his LinkedIn profile. On his social media accounts, he described himself as a storyteller, traveler, scuba diver, rock climber, alpinist and marathon runner. He wrote on his Instagram account about how living in Seattle allowed him to take his ice-climbing tools to the mountains every weekend. He shared that following the daily grind of his 9-to-5, he would pack up his gear and head to the mountains. "I had become so good at what I did that I started teaching others how to do it, and that was even more fun to teach others how to experience the joy you have in these wild places," he wrote in an Instagram post. "When I am in the mountains, I realize I was at my best. I was smart, witty, passionate, and bold." The pandemic put the brakes on his alpine climbs, but he dreamed of heading back to the climb. "So tomorrow I am getting on an airplane to Alaska," he wrote in an Instagram post on May 19, "in an attempt to climb the third-highest peak in the world because I don't want to know what happens to a dream deferred." The busiest season on the mountain lasts from mid-May to mid-June; there were about 500 climbers on it Wednesday, the agency said. Chiu is one of several people who have died while climbing Mount McKinley or other areas of Denali National Park. In April 2024, 52-year-old Robbi Mecus, of Keene Valley, New York, fell to his death while climbing an estimated 1,000 feet off Mount Johnson in the national park. The NPS said that a similar accident happened in 2010, in a similar location. That incident involved an unroped French mountaineer, who fell to his death on the Peters Glacier. His body was never recovered.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Yahoo
Alaska rangers recover body of man who died from fall on North America's tallest peak
Mountaineering rangers in Alaska recovered the body of a Seattle man who died after falling 3,000ft from a climbing route on Denali, or Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America. The National Park Service said that Alex Chiu, 41, was on the treacherous mountain's west buttress route when he fell from a location called Squirrel Point, about 12,000ft above sea level. Chiu's body was transferred to the state medical examiner on Wednesday, the Denali national park and preserve said. Two other members of Chiu's team had reported on Monday that Chui had fallen and that they had lowered themselves over the edge as far as possible but were unable to see or hear Chiu. He was not roped up at the time of the fall. Ground and air search crews were unable to reach the site until early Wednesday because of very high winds and heavy snow. An unroped French mountaineer fell to his death near the same location in 2010. His body was never recovered. This is the busiest time of year for climbing the peak, in May and June when climbers descend on the regional town of Talkeetna. There are currently 500 climbers on the peak and more on other mountains and glacial approaches to peaks in the spectacular range that is breathtaking but fraught with risk. Denali is known to be deceptively dangerous, although it looks relatively benign to ordinary tourists viewing the summit on a clear day from Denali national park. Despite being lower above sea level, the mountain has a greater vertical climb from the base to the summit than the world's highest mountain, Mount Everest in the Himalayas. Climbers wanting to summit Denali must scale 18,000 vertical feet compared with Everest's 12,000ft. The Associated Press contributed reporting
