Irishman falls to death in New Zealand

Cormac O’Keeffe

The 29-year-old was descending a steep slope in dangerous conditions with a female friend when they slipped and fell.

The two were on the top of Cascade Saddle in the Southern Alps when the accident occurred.

The unnamed Irishman and his female companion slipped on the snow-covered incline and fell about 800 feet into a drainage area near the town of Wanaka, on South Island, said local police Sergeant Aaron Nicholson.

He said the woman, also believed to be Irish, was flown to Dunedin Hospital with moderate injuries.

The dead man was the third adventurer to die on the mountain range in the previous 10 days, local police said yesterday.

On Tuesday, a 28-year-old German man was killed, while a 22-year-old Australian plummeted to his death the previous week.

Rescuers said that fine, warm conditions had added to the melting snow to create dangerous climbing conditions.

Sgt Nicholson said bad weather was preventing rescue workers from recovering the dead climber’s body, but that an attempt would be made “at the earliest opportunity.”

A spokesman for Wanaka police told the Irish Examiner yesterday that they were waiting for the weather to clear for a helicopter to get into the ravine and retrieve the victim’s body.

He said they would not be releasing the man’s name just yet.

“We have contacted Irish police who are informing the next of kin. We expect to release his name tomorrow,” he said.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that it was awaiting confirmation of the incident.

Wanaka is located on South Island, 506 miles south-west of the capital, Wellington.