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INYO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - A antheral fell to his decease connected Mount Whitney implicit the weekend, Inyo County Search and Rescue reported Monday.
According to a chap hiker who spoke with him connected the trail, his sanction was Paul Jonathan Ortiz Jr.
The 29-year-old was hiking up the mountain's 99 Switchbacks, a notoriously hard trail, but according to Wes Ostgaard, the jagged way was particularly treacherous that day.
"This was my 4th clip up Whitney. I person made this travel with hard conditions, but we had to crook back," helium said. "Winds were highly intense, and with the caller snowfall, the upwind was blasting snowfall successful our faces, covering the trail, and successful galore cases, caused the way to go invisible."
Ostgaard said his radical decided to chopped their hike abbreviated due to the fact that of however convulsive the conditions became. But connected the mode down, helium saw a acquainted face.
"As we descended, we discovered a assemblage that slid down supra the cables, made interaction with the cables, past slid down astir 70 feet," helium said. "I did not cognize him earlier the hike; however, we spoke a fewer times connected the way earlier I saw his body."
Ostgaard was capable to interaction exigency services via Starlink astir 12:30 p.m. Teams were acceptable to instrumentality disconnected by 3:30 p.m., but SAR says the betterment was postponed owed to precocious winds.
Rescuers tried again connected Sunday, hiking astir 7 miles earlier getting to the country of the accident. There, Mono County SAR was capable to little Ortiz's assemblage to a much accessible area. However, owed to ongoing precocious winds, betterment was again postponed.
Weather conditions yet improved capable to nonstop a chopper retired by Monday, and Ortiz was yet returned location to his household successful Chula Vista.
