A leading Slovak mountain climber, Ondrej Huserka, tragically died after completing a rare feat.
According to BBC, Huserka fell into a crevasse on Thursday, October 31, 2024, while descending the 7,234 m (23,730 ft) peak of Lantang Lirung Mountain in the Himalayas.
His Czech partner Marek Holecek said they were coming back to the base after becoming the first mountaineers to ascend the 99th highest peak in the world through a “terrifying” eastern route.
While climbing down the mountain, Huserka's rope suddenly broke, and he fell into an ice crevasse. He then “hit an angled surface after an 8-meter drop, then continued down a labyrinth into the depths of the glacier."
In a heartbreaking post on Facebook, Holecek recalled the time when he heard his partner’s cries from the crevasse while trying to save him. He wrote, “I rappelled down to him and stayed with him for four hours until his light faded.”
After freeing him from the ice, he realised that Huserka was paralysed saying, “His star was fading as he lay in my arms.”
The Slovak climbers’ association, SHS James, explained that adverse weather conditions in Nepal caused delays in the rescue action.
It said, “Following a phone call with Marek Holecek and his status published yesterday, and given the weather conditions under Langtang Lirung, the family and friends will have to cope with the fact that Ondrej is not with us anymore.”
As per the climber's personal website, he became part of the Slovak national alpinism team in 2011 and won the SHS James Best Ascent of the Year award six times.
