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5d ago

Avalanche on Denali’s West Buttress Causes Second Climbing Season Fatality

Rangers recovered 29-year-old Nicholas Vizzini’s body using a beacon search after a soft slab avalanche carried him down roughly 1,600 feet.

FILE - A view of one of the faces of North America's tallest peak, then-named Mount McKinley, in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska, Aug. 27, 2014. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)
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Mount McKinley’s West Buttress is pictured. A 29-year-old’s body was recovered from the mountain after dying in an avalanche, officials said.

Overview

  • The avalanche released around 16,600 feet and ran down to about 15,000 feet on June 10, striking Vizzini and his snowboarding partner while they descended the popular West Buttress route.
  • Two mountaineering rangers on an acclimatization climb reached the scene within minutes, located Vizzini by his beacon signal and attempted lifesaving measures before he was pronounced dead.
  • Vizzini’s partner sustained minor injuries and was scheduled to exit the mountain on June 11, according to Denali National Park and Preserve.
  • This incident follows a June 2 accident in which climber Alex Chiu fell 3,000 feet on the same route, marking the second death of the 2025 season.
  • Denali has recorded approximately 13 avalanche-related deaths and more than 130 total fatalities since 1932, with about 500 climbers currently on the mountain as the season peaks.