Four hikers dead in Mexico after falling 16,400 feet while climbing Pico de Orizaba – an active volcano and the highest mountain in the country
Four hikers dead in Mexico after falling from 16,400 feet while climbing Pico de Orizaba – an active volcano and the country’s tallest mountain
- Hugo Cruz; Jose Sepagua; Carlos Altamirano; and Humberto Muray died on Sunday in a climbing accident on Mexico’s Pico de Orizaba
- Preliminary reports indicated that one of the climbers slipped and fell before dragging the rest of the group with it
- At 18,491 feet above sea level, Pico de Orizaba, also known by its native name Citlaltépetl, is the highest mountain in Mexico
Four Mexican men were killed in a hiking accident on Pico de Orizaba on Saturday, authorities in the central state of Puebla said.
The climbers were climbing the active volcano — the tallest mountain in the country and third in North America — as they plummeted about 16,400 feet.
The Puebla Civil Defense said the climbing accident occurred on the south side of the volcano mountain — also known by its native name Citlaltépetl — in the municipality of Atzitzintla.
A preliminary report indicated that the accident was caused after one of the walkers slipped and fell, dragging the other three with it.
José Sepagua and three other mountaineers were accidentally killed on Sunday while climbing the Pico de Orizaba, an active volcano in Mexico.
Carlos Altamirano is one of four hikers who died in a climbing accident on Pico de Orizaba, an active volcano in Mexico
A preliminary report showed that Humberto Muray and three other mountaineers were killed in an accident on Pico de Orizaba Sunday after one of the men slipped and fell, dragging the group about 16,400 feet up the volcano, the highest mountain in Mexico and the third in North America. America
The victims have been identified as Hugo Cruz, 19; Jose Sepagua, 63; Carlos Altamirano, 53; and Humberto Muray, who is reportedly 56.
Footage released by Puebla’s civil defense showed rescuers, including the Mexican Red Cross, attempting to recover the bodies from a loose, rocky platform beneath an even steeper slope.
The bodies of Altamirano and Muray were recovered on Sunday.
Red Cross footage showed volunteers carrying the bodies of Cruz and Sepagua after they were removed around 4 a.m. Monday.
Sunday’s incident is the first fatality on Pico de Orizaba, which rises to 18,619 feet above sea level and borders the states of Puebla and Veracruz, since June 16, 2022.
Rescue workers from the state of Puebla and the Mexican Red Cross on Sunday removed the bodies of four hikers who died in a climbing accident on Pico de Orizaba
At 18,619 feet above sea level, Pico de Orizaba is the highest mountain in Mexico. It is located between the states of Puebla and Veracruz
Mexico’s Red Cross said a rescue mission to recover all climbers was completed around 4 a.m. Monday when two bodies were removed from Pico de Orizaba, an active volcano and the country’s highest peak.
Abraham Cruz of Bolivia fell 150 meters high, which authorities say was due to him not using proper climbing equipment.
In 2018, the US Embassy in Mexico said a member of the US diplomatic mission died while climbing the mountain.
In November 2017, another American climber died and seven others were rescued on the mountain.
Earlier this year, 31-year-old Perla Tijerina from Mexico spent 31 days at the top of Pico de Orizaba as part of a personal challenge in which she wanted to test her mental strength and personal resolve.