Climbers feared dead on tallest New Zealand mountain
New Zealand police fear that three climbers who went missing on Aoraki Mt Cook, the tallest mountain in the country, have died. Americans Kurt Blair, 56, and Carlos Romero, 50, and an unnamed Canadian were reported missing when they failed to meet their flight out from the mountain on Monday the 2nd of December 2024.
Police believe that the three men fell while trying to cross a ridge, Aoraki Area Commander Inspector Vicki Walker said. Bad weather has hampered a search for them which Walker would be wound down.
Drones and helicopters have been employed to trace the locations of the climbers who set out to climb Mt Cook on Saturday. Drone footage, according to Walker, showed evidence of where they had begun to cross the slopes beneath the Zurbriggen Ridge. Footprints and equipment, including energy gels and clothes thought to belong to the men, were captured by the drones.
Mt Cook via the Zurbriggen Ridge is a Grade Four ascent, meaning that it needs “sound mountaineering judgement and experience” to attempt. Blair and Romero are both believed to have been experienced climbers. Located in the South Island, it is 3,724m (12,217ft) and a popular challenge for climbers.
A tribute to Blair from the Silverton Avalanche School in Colorado called him a “beloved fixture of the San Juan mountains who comes from a proud lineage of mountain adventurers.”
“Anyone who shared time with Kurt in the mountains knows that his calm demeanour and positive presence ran counter to the rough edges and sharp tongues so often exemplified by the hard scrabble ranks of mountain guides,” the statement on social media said. His colleague told Stuff news in New Zealand that he had climbed all around the world.
California-based SWD Mountain Guides said that Romero, know as Kique, was a “beloved guide, educator, and mentor,” adding that he was “widely respected for his skills as a guide, and enthusiasm for climbing.”
Romero, originally from Venezuela, had worked at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California.
Police had not released the name of the third man, a Canadian national, due to the family’s wishes.
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