Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Fatal Fall From Half Dome

This, from a Yosemite website -- I know the information is about a month old, but I didn't see any mention of it over the past few weeks and it's worth posting if for no other reason than as a reminder of the perils this time of year in the Sierra.

"Fatal Fall From Half Dome

On about 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 8th, Valley District rangers, SAR personnel and trail crew members responded to vague cell phone reports that there'd been a fall with serious injury from the Half Dome cables (in October, the cable hand lines are laid down on the rock and the stanchions which hold the cables up are removed to prevent them from being damaged by avalanches). Responding personnel had to hike up the nine miles of trail and the slab approach to the northwest face due to marginal flying conditions. Orders were placed for several helicopters; two eventually made it into the Valley but were unable to transport crews to the site of the accident due to low clouds surrounding the dome. The medical hasty team arrived on scene at 5 p.m. and found the body of Emily Sandall, a 25-year-old New Mexico resident and graduate of the University of Montana, at a spot about 300 feet below the base of the cables. According to her hiking partner, Sandall was descending the cables when she slipped on the wet rock, lost her grip on the cable, and slid out of sight. Her body was flown out by long line under a helicopter the following day."

Wow, that is too bad.

It is odd that no one heard about it at the time. Being in Fresno, which is close to Yosemite, it seems like it would have been in the news here.

Edit #1: Here is a link to an article from the Albuquerque Tribune: Remembrance: Young woman was humanitarian

Edit #2: Hmmm... looks like we both found the same article.

Very sad.

Here's a picture of people on the cables without stanchions and steps. http://www.fedak.net/photos/HalfDome/PA190804-full.html
It seems more dangerous than the number of people doing it would suggest. It's unclear why accidents aren't more common.

The accident apparently happened after a rain which added to the slickness of the granite which was already smoothed by the heavy travel over the years.

I remember that for me, coming down even in the middle of the summer when there were steps was kind of scary. We had camped on the top and when we came down the next morning, me and my buddies were the only ones on the cables at the time. That was a long time ago, before the crowds, when there wasn't the false feeling of safety one gets by being with a lot of other people.

Bob, I concur that I got a false sense of security (and that was with the cables up) because of all the people. I figured the FS wouldn't allow the activity if it was dangerous. I guarantee you if there weren't others I would have put my tail between my legs and hiked back down.

Unibroker, Re "I figured the FS wouldn't allow the activity if it was dangerous." I think I was fortified by the same thought! And it seems to be true since accidents there are rare. Maybe that's the case because a little fear helps motivate people to concentrate harder and be careful. On the other hand, too much fear can impede concentration and cause an accident, but those people probably decide not to go.

While descending the cables last year - with steps and poles - I lost my footing on the one place where there was a missing step. The only thing to do was stick my feet out and hit the poles. Had I missed them I don't think I'd have been able to stop as my grip on the cables was weakening. It was a close call but imagine having nothing but other hikers to hit in case of a slip. In my veiw, not worth the risk, even when it's dry.

If the FS was to ban all dangerous activities we couldn't go anywhere except look at the wilderness from the shuttle bus - but don't get off or you might get hurt. Wilderness gives us some freedom to enjoy God's creation, and freedom to be responsible for ourselves without relying on others to protect us.

Honestly, the cables are kind of freaky. I don't think most people really understand the situation you're in until you get up there. When my friends and I went up there over the summer we left at midnight and ascended the cables alone in the dark. I kept telling them it was better that they couldn't see them, otherwise they might not want to make the ascent! They didn't believe me until we came down, alone, just after sun-up! The thing about the cables is there is so much traffic , the rock has become very slick, even in my approach shoes certain areas were really slippery. It would be much safer as a via ferrata route, if it was set-up that way.
Gusto

> It would be much safer as a via ferrata route

I had never heard that term, so I found this on the net: <a href=http://freespace.virgin.net/paul.benham/dolo/intro.html>Dolomite Via Ferata Introduction</a>

Unfortunately, anything rigid left in that area of Half Dome would be taken out by an avalanche in the first heavy snow winter.

Can the park rangers actually prevent someone from going somewhere in the wilderness?

I had an interesting conversation last year with Rob, the Crabtree ranger, the day after a pretty severe thunderstorm. When I asked how the rangers prevent the "life is a lot harder when you're stupid" crowd from going up Whitney via Crabtree when the weather is obviously dangerous, he said they don't - and can't. Words to the effect that the park was the property of all citizens and as such, they could not be prevented from attempting the summit if they so chose.

I always thought the rangers were the gate-keepers. Did I have it wrong?

If the rangers kept stupid people from going up Whitney from Crabtree, first, they have to determine who is stupid, which might be hard to do if someone is just tired and cranky. If they did stop them, a determined (or stupid) person would just go off trail around the ranger, putting the hiker in even more danger.

It's been suggested that this is why "they" allow dayhikers to go up the MR and down the main trail without a Trail Crest exit permit.

OK, you couldn't pay me eoungh to use that via ferrata style! I hiked HD on 8 October this year, and I thought the cables were going to get the best of me because I hate being close to edges. But they weren't half bad! Now, I might think differently if there were 500 of my closest friends on them simultaneously! (There was a previous string here that had a picture of that line-up!) Basically, everyone takes responsibility for themselves when in a wilderness situation, and sometimes it ends sadly and badly. While I feel bad for the young woman's family, friends, and those with her who tried to help, she had to know the risks and pushed on anyway. I just hope that she expressed to her family, as I have, that if something does happen, that they would know that she passed doing something she loved.

-Laura

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=285573&f=0&b=0
I thought the first message at the above link was informative and made some good points regarding the cables and the accident.

The poster noted a couple things that I was wondering about before. After the posts have been taken down: 1)tying to the cables with a carabiner gives only a false feeling of safety since a slip could result in a long fall before encountering the cable anchor. The huge stopping force at the cable anchor could either break you free or kill you right there. 2) tying to the cables with a Prusik knot would avoid that problem. However, it appears that he tied to the steel cables with a Prusik loop tied in a Klemheist knot which he thought was better in this case.

(I have to admit that I'm not a technical climber guy and I hope I got this right. )

I also had an interesting conversation with Rob Pilewski this past summer as I was trying to decide how I wanted to finish off OV to WP. By the time I got around to asking his opinion about the weather, I'm sure that he new he wasn't dealing with a inexperienced hiker, but I did spend quite a bit of time trying to figure out what he meant...I don't remember his comments, but do recall thinking "should I interpret this as it's stupid for me to go up higher? Or, it's just as dangerous at this elevation, so why bother stopping here?" I continued on up thru what I would guess was one of the worst rain (lightning and thunder too) storms of the summer because I didn't feel I was in danger. It WAS a real interesting light show a few thousand feer higher and I'm sure anyone on Whitney was fearing for their life.

Steve C. - thanks for the cool research. That link was fascinating.

And good point HikerLaura - death while doing what you love has a certain positive vig. My favorite in that regard is Pete Maravich...sure beats slowly wasting away.

"When I asked how the rangers prevent the "life is a lot harder when you're stupid" crowd from going up Whitney via Crabtree when the weather is obviously dangerous, he said they don't - and can't."

First, not all accidents are by stupid people.

Second, the rangers cannot act as gatekeepers (if they had the manpower) to select the worthy versus the unworthy because then that makes them responsible for the decision. Liability issue again... so their action must be inaction, at least on the front end. I agree with them.

Petzl makes gear designed specifically for Via Ferrata routes.
Just a comment for those interested.

My only thought is that installation of the cables seems to be an endorsement by the FS for the activity. I would never hold them responsible but in this extremely litigious society it seems to be a welcome mat for those attorneys that would.

The tragedy on HD back in the mid 80's is a perfect example of "stupidity" and yet some of the "victims" sued the FS. Thankfully I don't believe they were successful.

Several years ago I hiked to the top of Half Dome with my preteen daughters. At the base of the cables, I chatted with the ranger there about the history of the cables. When I tried to get his assessment of EVIDENCE BASED RISK, he asserted that there had never been a fatal fall off the cables when they were up for their intended summer use.

Just before I left Yosemite Valley earlier today (Dec 8, 2006) I was talking to a ranger concerning this young woman's unfortunate fall. He too knew of no fatal falls when the cables were up for summer use. He added that when they are down they tend to migrate to a location where a climber will possibly find a less favorable stance. (Of course, when they are down the probability of weather issues is also greatly increased.)

Even if it turns out that it is indeed true that there have been no summer fatalities on the Half Dome cables, the above comments should not diminish one's respect for the potential harsh consequences of the Law of Gravity. It seems to apply to us all. A few days prior to this fatal slip off the cables, a seasoned Yosemite veteran fell 500 feet off the Leaning Tower in the Valley.

Seasons Greeting to you all, Jim

via ferrata route in New Zealand.

http://www.rungway.co.nz/gallery.htm

Cables on HD are nothing like this. Even if you used a prusik or an ascender (or preferably both) it too could slip on the cold/icy steel like your hand could. A simple carabiner on the cable would only work if the stanchions were still there every 10 feet (or preferably less) to stop the carabiner sliding down the cable. In the winter, there is a loooong stretch of cable with nothing to stop a slide.

This is a good post about devices on HD:
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=285573&f=0&b=0