Every year, on average, 25 people who are injured while climbing, skiing and mountaineering on Mount Washington require some type of assistance from rescue groups such as the US Forest Service and the Mount Washington Volunteer Ski Patrol. The incident summaries listed below are provided as an educational tool in order to help prevent future accidents. The accidents range from sprained ankles to multi-systems trauma, to avalanche burials. The reports and analysis of these accidents have revealed some interesting insights into winter mountain safety.
Long sliding fall; Right Gully, Tuckerman Ravine
The victim was climbing up Right Gully to ski when a rockfall occurred above her In her attempts to get clear, she lost her footing on the steep snow and began to slide. The victim was unable to self-arrest as her poles and ice axe were on her pack at…
Avalanche accident; Right Gully, Tuckerman Ravine
An avalanche accident occurred in the Right Gully of Tuckerman Ravine on Mount Washington. Right Gully is a 1000 foot snow gully with a slope angle ranging from 35 to 40 degrees. The climbers destination was the summit of Mount Washington. At approximately 1130, an avalanche was triggered by 2…
Long sliding fall; Southeast Snowfields, Mount Washington
On 2-15-99, BM was involved in a serious accident on the summit cone of Mount Washington. At approximately 1500, BM and his partners left the summit of Mount Washington, descending the southeast snowfields. The slope angle varies from 30 to 35 degrees where the accident occurred. About half way down…
Long sliding fall; Lower Snowfields, Hillman’s Highway
On 2-13-1999, VM and her partner were descending the Lower Snowfields in Tuckerman Ravine on Mount Washington. The snow conditions were extremely hard, the result of a mid-winter rain storm. They decided to practice self arrest technique. The slope angle of the Lower snowfields is about 35 degrees, with a…
Climbing accident; Odell Gully, Huntington Ravine
On 12-27-1998, an ice climbing accident occurred in Odell’s gully in Huntington Ravine on Mount Washington. BC and his partner started up the steep water ice of Odell’s gully. BC began leading out. They were climbing the route with a running belay. About 25 meters out, BC placed one 22…
Avalanche accident; Damnation Gully, Huntington Ravine
DB and CL were climbing Damnation Gully, a 1600 foot, grade 3 snow and ice route on the north side of Huntington Ravine. Weather conditions on the mountain were moderate with light winds. Approximately 2 inches of new snow was reported in the previous 24 hours from the summit of…