North

Japanese climber dies after fall on Alaska's Mount Denali

Rangers in Alaska have recovered the body of a Japanese man who died after an apparent fall while climbing North America's tallest peak, authorities said Tuesday.

Rangers found man's body Monday, a day after they were contacted by family

A bus and sightseers look across a vast landscape toward a tall snow-covered mountain.
Sightseeing buses and tourists are seen at a pullout popular for taking in views of North America's tallest peak, Denali, in Alaska, in 2016. (Becky Bohrer/The Associated Press)

Rangers in Alaska have recovered the body of a Japanese man who died after an apparent fall while climbing North America's tallest peak, authorities said Tuesday.

Denali National Park and Preserve identified the climber as T. Hagiwara, from Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. He was identified by his first initial in keeping with his family's wishes, park spokesperson Paul Ollig said by email. 

Rangers had found his body Monday, a day after they were contacted by family who had not heard from Hagiwara in several days.

He was climbing alone. The fall was believed to have happened last Thursday, the park said.

Also Monday, rangers were notified of climber who had suffered a leg injury at around 2,621 metres on Denali's West
Buttress, after a three-person rope team fell. The injured climber was rescued.