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Cirque of the Towers accident 5 September
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Just a friendly reminder to everyone that if you would like to leave condolences and memories of Janette, please leave them on the memorial page here: https://www.mountainproject.com/forum/topic/119528559/janette-heung#ForumMessage-119530982 I think it would be really great to have all these amazing memories in one place and separate from accident details so loved ones can read them in the future without reading the accident details. Derek I agree with you, this thread should be information regarding the accident itself. I am interested in opening a discussion about fixed anchors in the Winds but unsure which forum would be most appropriate. Also, the fixed anchor topic may not even be worth discussing on MP but rather a discussion best saved for the local climbers coalition. Thoughts? |
Thomas Gilmorewrote: Agree, do you know what the local climber's coalition group is (I don't)? If not, let's start with a thread in the Wyoming area forum. A dedicated rappel route off Pingora would be a great idea. |
John Sigmonwrote: I also think upgrading the rap stations may be a totally beneficial endeavor. It looks like wyomingclimbers.org in the Lander area may serve as the local oversight for the Winds, but I could be wrong. I'm going to draft an email and get a conversation started to see if there's anything I can do. |
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2 cents to add here - 4 people weighting a single piece of UV damaged webbing and a shoe lace - err, I mean a piece of dyneema webbing - which is even more susceptible to UV damage and will show it less than standard tubular. These sorts of anchors are quite common in alpine areas. Nobody is confirming the anchor was even hit by the rock - a bit of a stretch and assumption here, but it seems also possible - maybe not in this case, but certainly possible - in fact far more likely IMO in general than getting cut by a rock - that 4 people ducking could have shock loaded the anchor - combined with some abrasion by the rock - plus they said the anchor was "tight", which geometrically multiplies the force - that in fact could have caused it to fail. Just a thought. I'm all for bolting popular rap lines, but I think there is more to look at here than just the thought of replacing a dicey anchor with bolts. There are 100's of similar webbing anchors in the area. |
Bill Schickwrote: "It's always been like this" is a poor defense against change. *Dozens* of parties descend from Pingora on a summer weekend, and there is plenty of loose rock. That same day a melon sized rock barely missed my partner. That volume of traffic plus this accident certainly justifies a discussion with the local climber's coalition. You may want to voice your opinion to them instead. |
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I think both Pingora and Wolf's Head could use some nice, stainless rap anchors at this point. We have them on the Diamond after all. |
Tim Stichwrote: I would donate. |
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Please pump the brakes out of respect for the fallen climber. Let's move the anchor discussion over to it's own thread. I will start a wind river fixed anchor discussion to the Wyoming regional forum. I will link the thread when created in just a moment. Please continue the anchor discussion here: mountainproject.com/forum/t… |
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Thomas I'm sorry for your loss. If fixed anchors save even one life it should be a no brsiner. I have had rock fall cut my rope prior to my rappelling off a route in the Canadian Rockies. It is a terrifying reality of climbing. |
John Sigmonwrote: If it's not clear to you, I suggest you digest the following before your next trip to an alpine climbing area. There have been numerous studies over the years of sun faded webbing - such as this one by BD. < link. There's a better one I can't find where there were several sample failures near body weight. 4 climbers = ~600 lbs. Anchor was described as "tight". At 15 degrees, double the force. At 10, triple. Finally, at 5, we break most of the samples in the above study. Tension = weight/(2*sin(angle)) Now on top of that - I suggest contemplating details of Skinner accident, where it was shown basically small wear and cutting in a stitched belay loop caused what is otherwise the strongest loop of webbing on a big wall climber's kit - to fail at about 2x body weight. Again - I'm all for bolted anchors - but I think those reading this thread need to more importantly be aware that alpine climbing involves sun faded and abraded webbing anchors - inspect carefully and be willing to lose slings on your way down. |
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You are assuming that it was tight beteen two horizontal points, but it was tight around a boulder. If the boulder was tall and skinny the angle wouldn't be that flat. My point is we really don't know, but it seems like you are taking a big guess. Another thing we don't know is whether all 4 climbers were hanging direcly on the anchor. Probably not or all 4 would likey have fallen. So the 600 lb load seems like a complete guess. I dont think it is impossible at all for a rick to have hit the anchor webbing. Rockfall hits bolts on a pretty routine basis in the northwest. |
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My condolences go out to Janette’s family, friends and partners in what must be an incredibly difficult time. To think this could have been a fatal accident x4 is truly unthinkable. I think Bill’s point is very valid that well-travelled rap routes should start seeing bolted anchors. Like all alpine climbers, I’ve rapped from tat a lot after assessing (and occasionally beefing it up). I’m happy to contribute some dollars toward hardware like so many other climbers, but I think it’s safe to say that the elbow grease is the hard part in installing bolted anchors in alpine environs. Almost twenty years ago, I was bailing off a route called Death by Agave in AZ. I was close to lowering off a sling that was obviously sun-faded. After assessing it, I cut it off and lowered off of my own. When we got back home I pulled the sling out of my pack and went to throw it away. Out of curiosity, I pulled on the sling. I was able to tear it apart with my bare hands. |
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I wonder to what extent doing double-rope rappels (and having to pull down a whole rope length) was an added risk factor in this incident. Is it common to do long rappels on this descent? |
JaredGwrote: We were one of the parties that rapped about an hour after the accident. We did double rope raps and didn't have any issues - I think it was just a freak accident. Several parties did double rope rappels that day. |
JaredGwrote: Double-rope raps always add an additional risk of ropes getting stuck, but I don’t think they necessarily increase the risk of knocking rocks down. FWIW, these raps can be done with a single rope. |
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My deepest condolences to her family and partners involved. I was also climbing Pingora that day and reached the ground just as the heli entered the cirque. I am trying to understand what time the accident occurred and how we were able to somehow rap past without seeing the accident scene. Can anyone describe approximately which rap anchor it was? Did your team replace the tat, as we rapped single rope and seemed to hit every station? |
Josh Digswrote: Colin and I rebuilt the anchor to continue the rappel so we could provide first aid to Janette. |
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From the R & I article < link Josh's account is expanded from this thread and worth reading. Two things catch my eye in this photo - I've never seen tubular webbing new in white - this sample was most likely super sun damaged and therefore weak. This is also "mil spec" webbing, which is weaker than "climb spec" webbing - weaker than any sample in the BD study linked above. The white tubular sample also looks like significant tearing took place in addition to cutting - note the frays - so failure from the tension as well - but to what degree of each is likely unknowable.  |
