A man has died as a result of a fall on the north face of Ben Nevis in what has been described as one of the most “difficult and technical rescues” a mountain rescue team has ever been involved in.
Emergency services were alerted to the incident by the man’s climbing companion, who was uninjured, at around 6pm on Friday.
Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team (LMRT), assisted by RAF Mountain Rescue Team, attended the scene with rescue helicopter R951 to uplift the men from the hill in an operation which lasted 12 hours and was carried out in darkness.
The men had been involved in a fall on Long Climb, the longest climb in the UK, 650ft from the top of the climb.
A spokesman for LMRT said: “This proved to be one of the most difficult and technical rescues Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team have ever been involved in. Conditions did not allow R951 get to do any more than taxi people and equipment onto the mountain. We were assisted by the RAF MRT on the evening. There were 18 team members and 13 RAF MRT involved.”
Rescuers were lowered 1,970ft down the route, to get to one of the climbers who was stuck on a belay. It was an extremely technical exercise, finding the precise location of the casualty in cloud and in the dark on a huge face on very dangerous, loose terrain.
The lower from the very summit of Ben Nevis was down the whole of the Orion Face with the rescuer and casualty hanging free for long sections of the lower before reaching the safer ground at the base of Observatory Gully.
The summit team located the surviving climber and lowered him to the base of the gully and walked out to a point where the helicopter could reach.
The second climber sadly had died from his injuries and another team had to climb up to locate the casualty and then lower him down to where he could be recovered to Fort William by R951.
A police spokesman said: “Sadly the casualty, who was in his fifties and from outwith the area, died as a result of his injuries. Officers are liaising with next of kin.
“Members of the Mountain Rescue Teams are thanked for their courageous efforts during the rescue, carried out in dark and difficult conditions.”