serious accident in Eldo this evening
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There was a serious climbing accident involving a ground fall on the route Werk Supp in Eldo this evening.The lead climber hit the sharp rock at the base from about 40 - 50 ft up at least. Climber was airlifted by helicopter and reported "alive" when evacuated. Very sobering. The rope was still attached to the cliff going up to I think two pieces, and back to the ground. Prayers and deeps concerns certainly go out to all involved. |
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Not much more information in this report: |
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Did pieces pull? seems like if someone was that high up on werks up they could get bomber pro in or were they still in the chossy beginning section with bad pro? Any info on how the climber is doing? |
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best wishes to that man for a speedy & full recovery |
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Best wishes to those involved. |
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I don't like to speculate on what happened out of sympathy, but yes the climber was beyond the point where you can get in solid pro and at least two pieces were still in the rock which to me should have easily kept him off the ground. Sounds more like belayer error, but I suppose we should let the authorities and rescue people come to those conclusions. |
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A recent update: |
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Preston climbs solo a lot. He has for years. Hope he gets well. |
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Many happy thoughts towards a speedy recovery. |
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My best wishes to Preston for a full and speedy recovery and his family for strength in this trial. |
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Allen Hill wrote:Preston climbs solo a lot. He has for years. Hope he gets well.Sounds like there is more to the story. If Preston is an avid soloist - and I'm not disputing your word on this - then it's unlikely that he fell from a 5.8 because it was too difficult for him. Maybe he dislodged a rock, startling his belayer - something like that. At any rate, I wish him a full recovery. |
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I just got word that he's in really bad shape. Let's keep our fingers crossed. He has three children. |
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Best wishes to Preston and his friends and family. You are in our thoughts and prayers. |
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Thank you Rachael, and her boyfriend for the help, it is so amazing how well the climbing comunity works together as a team. My prayers are with Preston. I wish him a speedy recovery and hope he hill pull through all this and climb again soon. |
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Many prayers for Preston and his family. |
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I am a a close friend of Preston, and upon hearing about the accident today, I came directly here for more information. As a friend and a climber I want to/need to, know what happened. He and I have climbed together and been friends for a long time. As fellow climbers you understand my need for this. Any information would be appreciated, but please send it directly to me, tsrville@yahoo. We all need to send big time energy to him and his family. He is a very special person. |
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And...for the record, Preston does not solo climb. |
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Not to argue but he did a fair amount of roper soloing in the early 00's. He told me often about his morning roped solos in Boulder Canyon. I simply assumed he still did. I'm sorry. |
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Does anyone have an update on Preston's condition? I'm really pulling for him. |
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Preston is still in very critical condition. There is severe trauma to his brain; one side continues to hemorrhage with fluid, the other has suffered stroke.
It is a wonder that he is alive at all - one tough guy. We're really pulling for him. |
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New update - Preston's cognition impulses are responding to very minor stimulations to his brain (such as increases in oxygen levels). Doctors are planning another CAT scan later today. |