Latest news with #OkanoganCountySheriff'sOffice
Toronto Sun
15-05-2025
- General
- Toronto Sun
Sole survivor of 400-foot rock climbing fall told 911 he could 'hardly breathe'
Published May 15, 2025 • 1 minute read The Okanogan County Search and Rescue team responds to a climbing accident in the North Cascades mountains in Washington on Sunday, May 11, 2025. Photo by Okanogan County Sheriff's Office / AP A rock climber who survived a long fall that killed his three companions hiked back to his car despite serious injuries and told a 911 dispatcher that he could 'hardly breathe,' according to a recording obtained Thursday by The Associated Press. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Anton Tselykh and his climbing partners were descending a gully between towering granite spires in Washington's North Cascades mountains on Saturday evening when an anchor securing their ropes tore out the rock. All four plummeted hundreds of feet. Tselykh lost consciousness and awoke several hours later in a tangle of ropes. He managed to trek to his car over snowy and rocky terrain and drive about 40 miles (64 kilometers) to the unincorporated community of Newhalem, where he called 911 early Sunday. He apologized to the dispatcher for his voice and said he could barely breathe. He reported that three of his companions had been killed in the fall, but he could only find two of their bodies in the dark. 'The whole team went down,' Tselykh said. 'We basically slid and rolled down, like all of us, to the bottom of the couloir and a little bit lower.' A couloir is a sheer gully that runs down a mountain. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Despite suffering brain trauma and other serious internal injuries, he told the dispatcher that he didn't think he needed immediate medical help. 'My face is very well beaten, hands and my ribs, I can hardly breathe,' said Teslykh. 'But I feel OK, I mean, I don't need emergency.' The dispatcher asked him to stay were he was so that medics could check him out and authorities could take his report. He was later hospitalized. By Wednesday morning, he was in satisfactory condition at Seattle's Harborview Medical Center, meaning he was not in the intensive care unit, Susan Gregg, a spokeswoman for UW Medicine, said in an email. Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs World Columnists Editorial Cartoons
Daily Mirror
14-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Miracle as rock climber survives 400ft plunge thanks to incredible pluck
The rest of Anton Tselykh's party sadly all died following the plummet down a mountain in North Cascades National Park in the US but Anton's survival story is staggering A rock climber who plunged around 400ft down a mountain somehow hiked to his car in the dark and then drove to a pay phone to call for help. Anton Tselykh, 38, survived the ordeal against all odds as, despite suffering internal bleeding and head trauma, he staggered for more than 12 hours to the pay phone. He was desperate to call for help for his three companions; Vishnu Irigireddy, Tim Nguyen and Oleksander Martynenko, who also fell down the steep terrain in North Cascades National Park in Washington, United States. The three friends sadly died of their injuries. Anton managed to extricate himself from a tangle of ropes, helmets and other equipment to leave on his rescue mission on Saturday. He is now in hospital receiving treatment for various injuries, including the head wound. Cristina Woodworth, who led the search and rescue operation for Okanogan County Sheriff's Office, said her team is investigating the fall, and added Anton's miraculous story is rare. The group of four were scaling the Early Winters Spires, jagged peaks split by a cleft popular with climbers in the North Cascade Range, about 160 miles (257 kilometers) northeast of Seattle. The anchor used to secure the friends' ropes was torn from the rock while they were descending, Okanogan County Coroner Dave Rodriguez said. The anchor they were using, a metal spike called a piton, appeared to have been placed there by past climbers, the coroner added. They plummeted for about 200 feet (60 metres) into a slanted gulch and then tumbled another 200 feet before coming to rest, the early stage of the investigation has discovered. Authorities believe the group had been ascending but turned around when they saw a storm approaching on Saturday. A three-person search and rescue team reached the site of the fall on Sunday, Ms Woodworth said. The team used coordinates from a device the climbers had been carrying, which had been shared by a friend of the men. Once they found the site, they called in a helicopter to remove the bodies one at a time because of the rough terrain, Ms Woodworth continued. Responders have poured over the recovered equipment trying to decipher what caused the fall. They found a piton — a small metal spike which is driven into rock cracks or ice and used as anchors by climbers — that was still clipped into the climbers' ropes. Mr Rodriguez, the coroner, continued: "There's no other reason it would be hooked onto the rope unless it pulled out of the rock." He noted pitons are typically stuck fast in the rock. Mr Rodriguez added that when rappelling, all four men would not have be hanging from the one piton at the same time, but taking turns moving down the mountain. The investigation in Washington continues
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
3 dead, 1 injured after rock climbing fall in Washington mountains
[Attached video: National Park Safety: Tips to know before you go] OKANOGAN COUNTY, Wash. (WJW) — Three people fell to their deaths and one person was badly hurt after a rock climbing accident in Washington State. A group of four people were involved in a fall while descending a 'steep gully' in the North Cascades, the Okanogan County Sheriff's Office posted on Facebook. Local parents surrender after death of 3-year-old According to the Seattle Times, the fall happened Saturday night or Sunday morning, but crews responded to the scene around 11:30 Sunday morning after the surviving member of the party managed to call for help. Okanogan County Undersheriff David Yarnell told the publication the four climbers had been tied to the same anchor point, which he pointed out is 'not preferred.' After examining the climbers' equipment, the head of the sheriff's search and rescue team said it appeared the anchor point the group used ripped out of the rock and the climbers fell about 400 feet, the Seattle Times reported. Three of the climbers died at the scene. The climber who survived the fall managed to walk back to the car and drive to a payphone to call for help, the outlet reported. He was hospitalized with internal bleeding and a traumatic brain injury. Bay High School lacrosse season canceled after tragic death A rescue helicopter was called to the scene to help extricate the bodies from the 'technical, mountainous terrain,' the sheriff's office post said. The victims' names were not released, but the sheriff's office said they were 36, 47, and 63 years old. 'Our thoughts are with the family members and friends of those involved,' the post concluded. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
3 people fall to their deaths while rock climbing in Washington state
Three people fell to their deaths Sunday while rock climbing in Washington state, likely because of an equipment failure, authorities said. A fourth climber in their group survived the ordeal. The climbers were descending a steep gully in the northern section of Early Winter Spire, a pair of rock formations in the Cascades some 150 miles east of Seattle, the Okanogan County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. What caused the deadly fall at the popular climbing spot is still under investigation, but the sheriff said it appears the climbers' anchors failed as they were rappelling down the rock face. Rappelling is a technique climbers use to hoist themselves down a vertical drop, with a rope and belay. Okanogan County sheriff's deputies were among the search and rescue crews who responded to the climbing accident at around 11:30 a.m. local time on Sunday, after the surviving climber extricated himself from the ravine and contacted law enforcement. The others were pronounced dead at the site of their fall. Their bodies were recovered by a helicopter rescue team from nearby Snohomish County. The helicopter's flight through 16 miles of rugged, mountainous terrain took longer than usual — about an hour — because of harsh weather, CBS affiliate KIRO reported. Video of the aerial recovery shared by KIRO showed the helicopter navigating blustery winds and fog as it made its way toward the climbers. Authorities have not identified any of the climbers by name. The sheriff in Okanogan County said the three who died were 36, 47 and 63 years old, citing information from the coroner's office. They were originally from Renton, Washington. "Our thoughts are with the family members and friends of those involved," the sheriff's office said. Oprah Winfrey reveals new book club pick: "The Emperor of Gladness" by Ocean Vuong Kim Kardashian set to testify in Paris robbery trial Trump's tariffs spark confusion and concern for American shoppers
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Fatal fall in Washington's North Cascades kills 3, leaves 1 survivor
Three climbers from Renton, Washington died over the weekend after falling during a climb in North Cascades National Park. Personnel from the Okanogan County Sheriff's Office and Okanogan County Search and Rescue volunteers responded to reports of a climbing accident near North Early Winters Spire, nearly 16 miles west of Mazama, Washington, at about 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. The responders learned that a party of four climbers from Renton, which is a suburb of Seattle, were involved in a fall while descending a steep gully, the Okanogan County Sheriff's Office said. When crews arrived at the accident site, they found three of the climbers dead. Missing Climber In Glacier National Park Found Dead After Suffering Apparent Fall According to the Okanogan County Coroner's Office, the three people who died were ages 36, 47 and 63. Read On The Fox News App The fourth climber, though, self-extricated and was able to contact law enforcement about the incident. 21-Year-old Rock Climber Falls, Dies At Storied 'Close Encounters' Filming Location: National Park Service The Snohomish County Helicopter Rescue Team assisted with the extrication of the three dead climbers from the mountainous terrain. A preliminary investigation has determined that the accident happened after an anchor failed while the climbers were rappelling down the steep terrain, though the investigation is still ongoing. Mount Everest Remains Believed To Be Climber Who Vanished 100 Years Ago The National Park Service did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment on the matter. The sheriff's office thanked the search and rescue volunteers and Snohomish County helicopter crews for helping with the "tragic incident." "Our thoughts are with the family members and friends of those involved," the sheriff's office article source: Fatal fall in Washington's North Cascades kills 3, leaves 1 survivor
