Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Fatal Accident on June 21st

70 yo female survived, 60 yo male was killed. Occurred in chute below Trail Crest during attempted glissade late on Saturday.

Do you have any more details? I made it back down to the Portal entrance at 8:30 pm and didn't hear or see any thing.

I scanned the on-line version of several newspapers, including the LA Times, the Inyo Register, and the Bakersfield newspaper, and couldn't find anything.

Here are some more details regarding the accident Saturday evening from my discussions with people at Trail Camp, the Coroner, and my own involvement.

A 60 yo man had tried to glissade from just below Trail Crest about 8pm and lost control, I assume due to the ice in the chute. His 70 yo wife followed soon after. The woman located her husband and found him unconcious. Those at Trail Camp heard the screams and climbed up to the bottom of the chute to assist. They found the woman injured and dazed. They evacuated her back to Trail Camp using a sleeping bag. She was rendered medical aid by somebody with substantial medical knowledge at Trail Camp. I understand she had a broken nose and lacerations, but otherwise, not in too bad of shape considering. Those in the area we're unable to locate the man during a search for him. I'm not sure if she moved some distance before the Trail Camp people found here or what. My involvement started when I arrived at Trail Camp mid morning and discovered that the man had still not been located. Hoping that he was able to somehow come to and shelter in place during the night, and as it appeared nobody else was searching off the trail, I got as much information as I could about the path of the fall and set off to the bottom of the chute in search of the 1st victim with the hope of rendering aid. At the bottom of the chute, a couple of ladies with a better view yelled out to be that they noticed something a couple of hundred yards above me. After a careful look, I also noticed something unnatural in the snow. I step kicked up to the location and discovered the victim. A check of pulse and breathing revealed that he had expired. I covered the body with the mylar blanket I always carry and secured it with rocks so it wouldn't blow away. I signaled back to Trail Camp with my mirror for several minutes to make the location known to those down below. About 20 minutes later, the SAR chopper came up from down below and I began signalling it with my mirror. Appearently they saw it as they came directly to my location. They assesed the situation from the air and headed back down to Trail Camp. Unable to do anything further, I step kicked about halfway up the chute picked up a number of items along the way. After I saw no more items in the snow, I traversed off the chute and continued my trip up towards the summit. About 3pm I arrived back to Trail Crest from the back side. There was a crew of 5 SAR folks recovering the body by way of a sling from the chopper. They moved the victim suspended back to near Trail Camp and assume loaded the body into the chopper and flew off. I'm guessing the female victim was flown out on the choppers first trip up, but don't know for sure. I had signalled the chopper on their second flight up. I observed about about 7 SAR flights during the afternoon, and I'm guessing their may have been more while I was on the back side.

Kudos the the folks that rescued and rendered aid to the woman. Wish I could have done more for the man ....

I climbed Whitney on Saturday with a friend. The news of a death is just horrible. I really appreciate the detailed information posted by Michael Tolchard, I met many people on that Mountain on Saturday, climbers are generally a really good group of people. Does anyone know who or where these people involved in the accident were from???? or in what paper I can find more info...any info is much appreciated! Thanks in advance...Sincerely, Shannon

This should end all questions this season as to whether the slope North of the switchbacks is still fit for glissading. As much as I love the snow, I'll be spending the extra hour on the switchbacks this weekend.

The couple was from Newport Beach in Southern California.

I think I missed a question ...

I haven't seen any newspaper report about this accident yet. I'm guessing they don't know about it.

The snow in the chute was quite soft while I was there midday Sunday. But, the paths where people have glissaded were still quite hard, even at midday. Once I got off the glissade runs, it became quite soft. Looking closely at the glissade runs I could see where thawing and refreezing has taken place, so my guess is it was quite hard at the time of the accident.

There are also a number of sizable rocks sticking out of the snow which would be hard to avoid while moving.

Michael,
Thank you for sharing the sad story. I have a few questions for you if you don't mind. Could you explain "it appeared nobody else was searching off the trail"? This happened on Saturday afternoon - how many people were at trail camp? Did those there ever conduct a search? Were they aware that someone was still missing?

Sorry to ask questions such as this, and I am in no way pointing any blame at you, however, I was quite surprised by your story. It sounds as if no one at trail camp attempted a rescue or even to locate the injured party prior to your arrival. I've personally been involved in two rescues on Whitney (hypothermia and a broken leg) and I simply can't believe that people left an injured person to spend a whole night outside! Day or night and regardless of the conditions, the small group I mountaineer with would have done anything to get to this person.

Hi JPR,

Questions are no problem at all. Hopefully everyone can learn from this accident.

Let me preface the answer to your question with this. I did not reach Trail Camp until 9am Sunday morning, 13 hours after the accident at 8pm Saturday evening. With this in mind, I can only relay what I was told about what actions were taken by others during those 13 hours as I had no first hand knowledge. My information may be wrong, partially wrong, or correct, I just don't know. Maybe others that were there during the rescue can shed some light. After 9am Sunday morning, I can give you a first hand account of what I saw and heard.

What I heard on the trail prior to my arrival as well as the rescuers themselves at Trail Camp was .... When the accident occured, people at trail camp heard screams from the area of the chute and went to investigate. They discovered the female victim, a loose pack, and a loose trekking pole, all of which were returned to Trail Camp, the female victim was transported with the aid of sleeping bag. I was also told a search was undertaken for the male victim. I don't know if this was at the same time the female was rescued or later. They knew there were two victims because the female victim told her rescuers. I assume the search for the female victim started at the time of the accident, 8pm. I don't know how long it took, or whether any seperate searches, at what time, and for how long were undertaken for the male victim.

Now for the first hand information. When I arrived at Trail camp at 9am there were about a dozen people floating around. The female victim was supposedly being treated behind the Solar Outhouse, although I didn't go over there. I was more concerned about the person that was still missing. I asked if the missing victim had been found. I was told no. I asked for more information about what side of the chute they came down. I was put in touch with some guys that had a better knowledge of the specifics and received detailed information about which side of the chute they came down and the location of where a trekking pole was found. When I asked if others were looking for the male victim, the response was something along the line of "I think so". I asked if anybody looking had a GFS radio and if so, what channel was everybody using. I was told that no radios were known to be in use, and no channel was designated by anybody. I indicated I would be using channel 10 as somebody thought that was a designated emergency channel (is it?), and for them to tell anybody else searching, or wanting to contact me, to use channel 10.

So off I went towards the switchbacks. Once I gained the elevation I wanted, I bailed off the switchbacks and headed for the bottom of the chute, periodically yelling "Robert". The rest was detailed in my previous post.

I have to admit the whole issue of what was not occuring at 9am when I arrived at Trail Camp did bother me. Once I got towards the chute, I was bothered even further by the fact that I saw nobody anywhere off the trail making any effort to find a 60 year old man that was, at best, seriously injured. I do believe at least some of the people on the switchback were aware that somebody was missing, and were making an effort to locate the victim as they headed up the switchbacks, as clearly shown by the ladies that yelled out to me they thought they saw something above me.

I don't know why so little effort was being made to locate the male victim during the day. It seemed real obvious to me that someone falling down the south side of the chute would probably end up near the bottom, as long as they didn't get caught up in the rocks on the way down. So, I decided at the obvious place to start was at the bottom and work my way up. If that didn't work, then there would be the possibility that he woke up, and had wondered off in a dazed state of confusion in god knows what direction (but probably downwards), which would make him harder to find, but I'd keep at it.

As it turns out I found him at 10:45, 1 hour and 45 minutes after I started my search. I found him just about where I would expect to find somebody that fell down that chute, but not quite at the bottom. No secret formula here, just gotta figure out which way gravity is going to make you slide.

So, I guess really I don't understand what issues people were having. Maybe people assumed he was already dead. I sure wouldn't want somebody making that assumption about me! Maybe folks just didn't want to get involved due to liability issues or out of fear of what they would find. Maybe many just didn't know that somebody was in need of their help. Maybe some felt making the summit was more important. Maybe some felt they couldn't deal with a little snow. Maybe some didn't have the skills to go off trail. Maybe some didn't want to get lost. Who knows?

I agree with you 100%. If somebody is missing or injured, they need my help, and nothing is more important to me, and I'll spare no effort. It would have made my day if I were able to help save this guy. Not to be this time around, but it won't stop me from trying even harder next time.

Interesting you caught my previous comment that prompted your question. Yah, the effort I saw during the day first hand bugs me.

From what I heard about the evening rescue, it was a great job all around, and those that were involved have my greatest appreciation and admiration.

Also, I would suggest that the SAR folks/chopper carry GFS radios. They are becoming quite popular and would be a great tool in an emergency. I had no contact with any SAR team member the entire day, other than flashing a mirror at their chopper.

Be Safe All

Michael

Michael,
If there was such a thing as a "Whitney Medal of Honor" I would nominate you for it. Thank-you for caring enough to help. Where ever Robert is now I know he appreciates the final act of decency and the dignity you provided to him. Good people like yourself usually dont want a big fuss made over something like this but you are an inspiration.
God Bless you!

Lets promote the designation of GMRS/FRS radio channel 10, code 00, as the hiker's volunteer emergency/rescue channel.

Thanks, but the medal should go to the folks at trail camp that executed the night rescue. They made a difference. With night falling and temps dropping, who knows what would have happened to that lady had she been left on her own.

I think GMRS/FRS would be very helpful in contacting other hikers on this trail due to it's high use. In the backcountry, with it's limited range, it would probably be more useful for an injured or lost hiker to contact SAR folks as they flew over in a search of them.

For the Whitney Trail, a sign at the trailhead indicating which GMRS/FRS channel is to be used in an emergency would be just the ticket in my opinion, and would only cost a few bucks to erect or tack onto one of the exisiting signs.

A quick search turned up this info regarding an emergency channel. Maybe the FCC should set a standard. GMRS radios (which include the FRS channels) are preferable over FRS radios as they transmit further. Then again, might be time for me to put my Amateur Radio License to use and get a real radio...

-Michael

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"Although there is no law or rule regulating it, many groups and users across the country have recommended that 462.675 MHz be designated a traveler's assistance and emergency only channel, similar to CB channel 9. Many areas have adopted this, while others have not and still conduct non-critical GMRS traffic on this frequency."

"There has been some interest on which channel might be considered a "travel channel, calling channel, or even and emergency channel." Since the range of a half watt radio is very limited the concept ONLY makes sense if you're within half a mile of the same vehicle going the same direction OR you are lost within a mile or so of an FRS station willing to help. Given those conditions it is probably best to try channel 1. I suggest you try saying something like, "travelers aid" anyone listening. Remember that FRS was NOT designed to provide emergency assistance. DO NOT expect to attract help in an emergency calling on any FRS channel. The best advice we can give is to carry a cellular phone."

"462.675 Mhz Nationwide emergency and road info calling. PL 141.3. "

"467.675(2) (2)Nationwide emergency and road information calling. Nationally recognized coded squelch for 675 emergency repeater operation is 141.3 Hz."

"Unless you know you have access to a repeater on this frequency pair, do not expect this channel to be of any practical use in emergencies. Low power simplex portables on 462.675 will not attract anyone's attention. Persons using repeaters on this frequency do not listen for simplex communication and the likelihood of you finding a CTCSS code in a hurry to access a repeater you have never used before is very remote. If you are using a portable radio set your CTCSS transmit tone for 141.3. Consider another radio service or better yet a cellular phone if you need personal emergency communication. Note also that GMRS repeaters may not have a phone patch facility as is common in the Amateur Radio Service. When you use GMRS for an emergency you must relay the information to another operator that has access to a telephone, providing someone actually answers your call. All stations should listen with squelch disabled before transmitting or activating a repeater. Some licensees use simplex communication on repeater output channels. Be courteous to other stations."

"462.675 is also available for any other GMRS traffic but, is the most common frequency monitored by REACT teams. GMRS does not use channel numbers like FRS and CB."

"Note that whenever possible, channels 1-7 should be used for Emergency communications that are to be relayed. These channels are universally accessible by General Mobile Radio Service & FRS, so can be accessed by each. "

At several ski areas I've seen signs posted that say the ski patrol monitor channel 9-11 for emergencies. Seems like a natural way to go. This works pretty well when you have many receivers all over the mountain. Not sure how well it would work on a place like Whitney where I have not seen as many people carry FRS radios and there aren't a few dozen safety personnel around to monitor. At the risk of opening up the can of worms again, cell phones are another possibility.

Sierra Sam,

Cell phones are so hit and miss on this trip it would give such a false sense of security. I've had a phone fully charge with a full signal strength and still could not get a call out up on the ridge. There are a lot of competing cells up on the ridge, I guess, because my phone kept bouncing between Roam and AT&T. If you are a backpacker and don't put the thing in the sleeping bag with you at night you can end up with a dead phone in the morning.

Anything that happens below Trail Crest you can forget about getting a cell call out.

To me they are more trouble than they are worth, and I know this statement will stir up a hornet's nest. But, one of the reason I go out is to get away for modern conveniences, like the phone and those two way radios, which are in vouge now.

In my mind there is enough money generated by the permit fees to justify building and staffing a seasonal ranger station at Trail Camp for just this purpose.

Bill

Maybe they should slap a solar powered radio phone onto the side of the solar outhouses at both camps. I think I recall seeing a setup like that in Round Valley near Mt. San Jacinto on the seasonal ranger station there. Even though no ranger was present, the radio phone was still available to campers/hikers for emergencies. With the volume of people on Whitney, I think it would be warranted.

The cell phone thing sure failed on Sunday. Everybody who had a cell was tryig 911 but nobody could get a signal.

I do think that those that wish to carry radios and phones should do so, but must be considerate of others.

O.K. then, unless there are any objections it's 9-1-1. (GMRS/FRS channel 9, code 11). Do we need U.S. Forest Service permission to attach a sign panel to the existing trail-head sign?

God Bless all those who rendered assistance. Its a sad commentary on human nature that only a small percentage of people are capable of handling an emergency situation.

Not all FRS models have subcodes. If you designate an emergency channel with subcodes, it could eliminate those with the simpler models.

Good idea of an emergency communication link from the solar toilets. I suggest the Forest Service work out the details.

I did that glissade a week before this happened using hiking poles, as decribed in a June 14 Trip Report. One of my poles is still locked up and can't be adjusted.

It would make more sense to designate a frequency/channel that supports both FRS and GMRS. It seems 462.675 Mhz is the emerging standard in the country, though I don't know how that translates to the channels on my Talkabout.

For the new motorola GMRS radios channel 9 code 11 is a half power channel. Therefore limiting distance to 2 miles or less.

However, they have a really great scan feature which allows for scanning all channels.

The forest service just needs to get their act together and designate a channel/code policy for emergency use. All hikers should be carrying one of these radios.

JSW