Alex Fitzgerald, 27, from Seattle by way of Michigan, was found dead after he and his hiking partner experienced high winds, heavy rain and white-out conditions while they were at 9,300-feet in elevation after spending the night in a tent at Camp Muir.
Rangers then received a 911 call around 10 a.m. Wednesday from his hiking partner, a 19-year-old woman who was visiting from Virginia. A quick-response team was dispatched to assist the rangers.
There were twelve National Park Service rangers and thirteen Mountain Rescue volunteers from Olympia, Tacoma, Central Washington, Seattle, and Everett involved in the rescue and recovery.
The woman was found by the rescue team shortly before 4 p.m. at the top of the Skyline Trail, about 7,200 feet elevation, being assisted by two other hikers. She told the arriving rangers that Fitzgerald had become disoriented and then unresponsive. She told the rangers that she left to get help after she was unable to move him or to get a cell phone signal.
The body of Mr. Fitzgerald was found just before 5 p.m. at around 7,700 feet on the Muir Snowfield.
“It’s a really good reminder to be careful and plan ahead [and] to take with you the things you would need to survive if conditions change,” park spokesperson Kevin Bacher said. “The higher up on the mountain you go, the more often [a change in weather] could happen and the more deadly it is when it does.”
