Mt. Mckinley Climbers Presumed Dead, Rescue Suspended

Mt. Mckinley Climbers Presumed Dead

The search and rescue efforts for the four Mt. Mckinley climbers have been suspended as they were believed to have died following an avalanche, officials said.

The climbers were identified as Japanese nationals Yoshiaki Kato, 64, Masako Suda, 50, Michiko Suzuki 56, and 63-year-old Tamao Suzuki, 63, who are now presumed dead by either snow burial or injuries suffered after a shallow avalanche on Alaska's Mt. McKinley on Thursday.

One climber, 69-year-old Hitoshi Ogi, survived the incident after he was swept into a mountain crevasse and was able to climb out, sustaining a minor hand injury, officials said.

The five were traveling on McKinley's West Buttress as one rope team, although the rope broke during the incident

There have six climbing fatalities on Mt. McKinley this season. Since 1932, a total of 120 climbers have perished on the mountain, 12 due to avalanches. Last week's four avalanche fatalities were the first to occur on the popular West Buttress route.