Rappelling accident leaves badly injured climber stranded on ledge of CA mountain
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article previously misstated the driving distance from Fresno to Mount Whitney. The story was updated with the proper distance.
The corrected story is below.
A climber was injured rappelling a California mountain, leaving them stranded on a ledge, rescuers say.
Inyo County Search and Rescue got a call about an injured climber on Mount Whitney shortly after 5 p.m. on Sept. 21, the rescue nonprofit said in an Oct. 6 Facebook post.
With serious trauma after “an accident while rappeling,” the climber ended up “stranded on a ledge above their partner and incapable of using one of their arms,” rescuers said.
Eight search and rescue members responded with the hopes that a helicopter crew could hoist one team member to the climber and quickly take them from the area, rescuers said.
However, with “limited daylight and serious concerns about whether the terrain would accommodate a hoist,” rescuers said they set a second plan in motion; a ground crew started making their way to the injured hiker.
Just before dusk set in, rescuers said they tried the helicopter hoist approach.
Though rescuers could see the climber, “the steepness of the terrain” rendered a hoist rescue impossible.
At the same time, the nonprofit said rescue climbers were making their way to Whitney Portal.
After making verbal contact, rescuers said they soon reached the climber and began a medical assessment.
The climber’s partner stayed with them to aid in the rescue, the nonprofit said.
Rescuers said they set up a rope system and lowered the climber, who remained “calm and helpful in a scary and painful situation.”
Rescuers helped the climber off the rock, the nonprofit said.
The climber slowly made their way down the road, then to a hospital, rescuers said.
“Being injured and stranded high up on rocks is a dangerous and complex rescue,” rescuers said. “This climber was lucky to have some of our highly trained tech rescuers available.”
At 14,505 feet high, Mount Whitney is the highest peak in the continental United States, the National Park Service said.
It’s about 80 miles east from Fresno.
This story was originally published October 7, 2025 at 12:49 PM with the headline "Rappelling accident leaves badly injured climber stranded on ledge of CA mountain."
