3 Latvian climbers die in fall on Mount McKinley

Three members of a Latvian climbing expedition have died in an accident high on Mount McKinley in Alaska’s Denali National Park, according to the Latvian Mountaineering Association. A fourth climber was rescued and is in critical condition, the organization said.

Mount McKinley, with a summit of 20,310 feet above sea level, is the highest peak in North America. The accident occurred Wednesday at about 18,000 feet, according to the U.S. National Park Service. That led to a rescue attempt Thursday amid unsettled but improving weather conditions.

On Friday morning, the Latvian Mountaineering Association said Inese Pučeka, Vija Olte and Renārs Kunigs-Salaks were killed in the accident. Mārtiņš Bilzēns was in critical condition and transported to a hospital, the organization said.

The park service did not immediately confirm the deaths or the identities of the climbers. It said in a statement Friday that search and rescue teams used a long line dangling from a high-altitude helicopter to rescue an injured climber at about 17,200 feet at 4 p.m. Thursday.

“Operations for the three remaining climbers have transitioned from a search and rescue mission to a recovery effort,” the park service said.

The mountain is well known as Denali, which is how the Koyukon people refer to it. Last year, the Trump administration reinstated the name that honored former U.S. President William McKinley, who never visited the mountain and was assassinated in 1901.

The main climbing season for Mount McKinley typically runs from late April through mid-July. Most climbers are part of small, guided expeditions, and about 90% of them try to complete the West Buttress route. The park service said there were more than 500 climbers on the mountain.

News of the accident broke Thursday. The park service reported that four members of a seven-person expedition had fallen in the area of Denali Pass. Three of the expedition’s seven members returned to high camp Wednesday night after trying to rescue the other four.

Denali Pass, at 18,200 feet, is between the last high camp, at 17,200 feet, and the summit. It is a steep and icy section of the climb where teams usually rope themselves to fixed “pickets” placed every 90 feet or so. It is considered one of the most dangerous parts of the climb.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.