A tourist has died after he fell into a mountain crevasse in Peru.
Ivan Pesl, from Slovenia, died on July 7, as he was walking to the Huantsán mountain of the Andes in Peru, local newspaper Perú.21 reported on Wednesday.
Pesl had been with friends Peter Kokorec and Brenko Vizjak, as they tried to reach one of the mountain's peaks, the highest of which stands at 20,895 feet above sea level.
The group had been waiting for their porters—those assisting them up the mountain—when the incident occurred, said local media RSD, citing the president of the Association of High Mountain Guides, Porfirio Cacha Macedo. They had scrambled up a higher area to see whether their porters were near. This is when Pesl stepped on a bit of ice above a crevasse of the mountain.
The ice broke causing Pesl to fall deep within the crevasse.
On July 11, rescuers set out to retrieve his body, local outlet Diario Correo reported. This marks the third death this year of climbers in the Peruvian mountains.
Huantsán, also known as Tunsho, is part of the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, a section of the larger Andes. It has four peaks and is known for being extremely difficult to climb.
It is the least climbed mountain in the Cordillera Blanca.
All routes up the mountain are difficult to ascend. The easiest is the north-northwest ridge. The route still proves perilous due to its extremely complicated terrain. This is the main reason very few people have scaled the peak.
The very first ascent to Huantsán's peak was undertaken by Tom de Booy, Cees Egeler and Lionel Terray in 1952.
There are many things mountaineers must watch out for when scaling large and perilous peaks. These include loose or falling rocks, as well as falling ice and avalanches. The weather at high altitudes can also be unpredictable.
Crevasses are only of the dangers facing mountaineers. There are several ways you can spot one but they are often concealed by ice or snow, as was the case on the Huantsán mountain.
They will often cause a shadow in the ice. Mountaineers can also prod the ground in front of them to ensure the ground is steady and not about to give way to a crevasse.
Sometimes, a thin layer of snow can also mask a crevasse, creating what is called a snow bridge that will blend in with the surroundings. This snow bridge will rarely hold a person's weight.
The perilous terrain of mountains also make rescue efforts incredibly difficult.
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About the writer
Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more
