Climber killed on Mount Rainier is identified. Other climber is listed in serious condition
A mountain climber killed in a rockfall Wednesday evening on Mount Rainier has been identified.
Arleigh Dean, 45, of Juneau, Alaska died from multiple traumatic injuries, the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office said Friday afternoon.
Dean died after a rock slide hit a camp at the 10,400-foot level of the mountain where three parties of two climbers each were preparing for a climb to the 14,411-foot summit on the mountain’s Liberty Ridge route.
Another climber injured in the incident was in the intensive care unit at Harborview Medical Center on Friday morning, according to spokeswoman Susan Gregg.
The 37-year-old man was listed in serious condition.
According to the Associated Press, another injured climber was taken to Arbor Health, Morton Hospital in Morton, where he was treated and released Thursday, said Roy Anderson, the hospital’s spokesman.
Authorities were alerted to the slide about 8 p.m. Wednesday when someone called 911 from the camp site, park officials said.
Rangers flew to the site Thursday morning in the park’s helicopter. After conducting aerial reconnaissance, the helicopter took the most seriously injured climber to a rendezvous with Airlift Northwest, which in turn took the person to Harborview Medical Center.
The second injured climber and Dean’s body were flown out at 2:30 p.m.
The remaining three climbers were flown off the mountain at 4:45 p.m., park officials said.
The Liberty Ridge route has been the site of a number fatalities over the years, including in 2014 when three climbers died in a fall there.
This story was originally published May 31, 2019 at 2:42 PM.
