3 killed in Kenya, climbing Kilimajaro

[tivoli_mike]

3 climbers killed on Mt. Kilimanjaro

MOUNT KILIMANJARO NATIONAL PARK, Tanzania (AP) -- The climbers were asleep in their tents, hoping to get a few hours rest before a pre-dawn ascent of Africa's highest peak, when the boulders rained down. Three Americans were killed and two others seriously injured.

 

The Americans were among several dozen foreign climbers from various tour groups camped near Arrow glacier on Kilimanjaro's difficult Western Breach when the rock slide occurred Wednesday.

 

The dead were identified as Kristian Ferguson, 27, of Longmont, Colorado; Mary Lou Sammis, 58, of Huntington, New York; and Betty Orrik Sapp, 63, of Tennessee.

 

Ferguson, a satellite engineer at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colorado, had been hiking with his wife and others from the Colorado Mountain Club, friends and club officials said.

 

"Kris had a lucky star, up until the day before yesterday," said his father, Paul Ferguson, of Redmond, Washington. "He was always energetic and brilliant at whatever he tried. He was able to deal with the most technical problems and yet he was the most cerebral type of person when it came to things like psychology and philosophy and poetry."

 

"He was charmed and charming," said his mother, Karrie.

 

Ferguson said Jodi Coochise, his daughter-in-law, told him the couple were in their tents when the rock slide occurred.

 

Debbie Ramsey, a family friend answering the telephone at the Sammis home, said Sammis was in Tanzania with her husband, Scott, and three adult children.

 

"It was a dream come true for them," Ramsey said of the family's trip.

 

Sammis "loved to hike and was always going on hiking trips with friends," Ramsey said. "Mary was a very upbeat, wonderful, great friend."

 

The injured Americans were flown to Nairobi, Kenya, for treatment, said James Wakibara, acting spokesman for Mount Kilimanjaro National Park.

 

Several Tanzanian guides also were initially reported killed, but regional police commander Mohamed Chico said Thursday that no Tanzanians had been found among the dead.

 

Of the world's top peaks, Kilimanjaro is among the easiest to scale -- though, as Wednesday's slide demonstrates, it can be deadly.

 

The climbers set out Saturday to climb the Umbwe route, the most difficult on Mount Kilimanjaro, which at 19,443 feet is the highest freestanding mountain in the world. Even so, the route is only a very difficult hike, not requiring safety ropes or special equipment.

 

The group had taken several days to reach the camp at Arrow glacier, the normal resting point at 15,800 feet, before summiting Uhuru peak along the Umbwe route. Climbers usually arrive before nightfall and sleep until they begin the ascent at around 2 a.m. to reach the summit at dawn.

 

Above the campsite is a steep slope of loose gravel and above that is the crater wall of a now-extinct volcano. While the climbers were sleeping, boulders and rocks broke off the wall and fell on the campsite, said Thomas Kimaro, owner of Alpine Tours.

 

Wakibara said a rescue team was immediately sent up the mountain along with every available porter to help bring down the dead and injured. By Thursday morning, more than 50 foreign climbers had been brought down, some with minor injuries, and the Umbwe route was clear, he said.

 

More than 20,000 tourists attempt to climb the mountain every year. About 10 people die each year during the climb, usually from high-altitude sickness.

 

But rock slides are rare, Wakibara said.

 

"The possible explanation I hear on this could be earth movement or vibration," he said. "It has never happened like this in the past."

 

Chico said experts were on the mountain Thursday trying to determine what caused the slide. There had been a change in the weather at the peak before the rock fall, officials said without elaborating on how that could have contributed to the accident.

 

Warmer temperatures over the last decade have melted some of Mount Kilimanjaro's glaciers, causing them to retreat, which has loosened rocks once held in place by the ice.

 

Climbers on other routes were allowed to continue Thursday, Wakibara said.

[crazyjizzy]

Bummer, I'll be there in a month. Actually, Kili is in Tanzania. The injured were sent to Nairobi, Kenya.

[Dru]

The climbers set out Saturday to climb the Umbwe route, the most difficult on Mount Kilimanjaro, which at 19,443 feet is the highest freestanding mountain in the world. Even so, the route is only a very difficult hike, not requiring safety ropes or special equipment.

 

"most difficult" except for the Breach Wall routes maybe

 

lets not even get into "highest freestanding mountain in the world"

[artschool]

I for one am very thankful dru is here to clear this sort of thing up and to help us maintain a proper perspective.

My thoughts go out to all the families and friends of the climbers.

[tivoli_mike]

One of the climbers was from Redmond

MOUNT KILIMANJARO NATIONAL PARK, Tanzania -- The climbers were asleep in their tents, hoping to get a few hours rest before a pre-dawn ascent of Africa's highest peak, when the boulders rained down. Three Americans were killed, and two others were seriously injured.

 

The Americans were among several dozen foreign climbers from various tour groups camped near Arrow glacier on 19,340-foot Kilimanjaro's difficult Western Breach when the rockslide occurred Wednesday.

 

The dead were identified as Kristian Ferguson, 27, of Longmont, Colo.; Mary Lou Sammis, 58, of Huntington, N.Y.; and Betty Orrik Sapp, 63, of Melrose, Mass.

 

The climbing trip was a lifelong dream of Sapp and her husband, William Sapp Jr., both physicists, neighbor Jeannine Holden said. The husband survived.

 

Ferguson, a satellite engineer at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo., had been hiking with his wife and others from the Colorado Mountain Club.

 

"Kris had a lucky star, up until the day before yesterday," said his father, Paul Ferguson of Redmond. "He was always energetic and brilliant at whatever he tried. He was able to deal with the most technical problems, and yet he was the most cerebral type of person when it came to things like psychology and philosophy and poetry."

 

Kristian Ferguson moved to Redmond with his family when he was in the second grade, his sister, Kellie Ferguson, said. He graduated from Eastside Catholic High School in Bellevue as co-valedictorian in 1996. He graduated from Gonzaga University in 2000. "He was charmed and charming," said his mother, Karrie.

 

Paul Ferguson said Jodi Coochise, his daughter-in-law, told him the couple were in their tents when the rock slide occurred. Coochise also was struck and bruised by rocks.

 

Debbie Ramsey, a Sammis family friend, said Sammis was in Tanzania with her husband, Scott, and three adult children.

[Dechristo]

I for one am very thankful dru is here to clear this sort of thing up and to help us maintain a proper perspective.

I, for one, am very thankful there is no shortage of arbiters of proper perspective.

[cj001f]

Post deleted by cj001f

[artschool]

I apologize for starting what appears to be a spray thread related to people's deaths.

[crazy_t]

I just got an email from a friend who was actually there during the rockfall (he was hit in the head, luckily only a laceration). Contrary to earlier news reports, the rockfall occurred on the route and affected a number of people climbing. The rockfall ranged in size up to car-sized blocks, and rained down for 2 minutes, on a very exposed section (1 reasonable spot for shelter in 200 m area). Not included in original reports was the fact that 5 porters died, and another lost a leg. Sounded pretty horrific.

Edited January 11, 2006 by crazy_t

[Winter]

My condolensces to the families. A horrible tragedy.

 

In Dru's defense, the reporting is very misleading. The Umbwe route is an access route to the mountain that guided parties routinely use to access the Baranco Wall which leads to the easier summit route on the other side of the hill.

 

It sounds as if the accident actually happened on the Western Breach/Arrow Glacier Route, which ascends straight up the 4th class wall from the top of the Umbwe access route. Its a wall of choss and there are places that the route is very exposed, so I'm not surprised the rock fall has dire consequences. But I'm still suprised there were so many people caught, because most of the porters usually walk around to meet the climbers on their descent.

[crazyjizzy]

I just got an email from a friend who was actually there during the rockfall (he was hit in the head, luckily only a laceration). Contrary to earlier news reports, the rockfall occurred on the route and affected a number of people climbing. The rockfall ranged in size up to car-sized blocks, and rained down for 2 minutes, on a very exposed section (1 reasonable spot for shelter in 200 m area). Not included in original reports was the fact that 5 porters died, and another lost a leg. Sounded pretty horrific.

 

I am sorry about the deceased.

 

I will soon be in East Africa, so am interested in this story. After search the net, nowhere but here have the deaths of five porters been mentioned. Can this be confirmed? Also, many reports mention that it was the camp site that was hit.