Another Climber Collapses Atop Mt. McKinley

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No information was given as the state of the 22-year-old climber just prior to his collapse. Photo courtesy SuprerViewer Alice Sims. Click here to view the original.

Jamey Kirk

Story Created: Jul 8, 2008 at 2:04 PM AKDT

Story Updated: Jul 8, 2008 at 2:04 PM AKDT

In less than one week, another mountaineer collapsed and died while climbing Mt. McKinley in Denali National Park and Preserve. As 20-year-old Pungkas Tri Baruno, of Jakarta, Indonesia, descended the West Buttress route the night of July 7, 2008, he collapsed approximately one quarter-mile from the 17,200-foot high camp.

Guides quickly initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and immediately called for assistance from another guided team at high camp via family band (FRS) radio.

For the next hour guides performed CPR on Baruno, but all attempts failed to revive the climber.

Baruno began his ascent of the West Buttress on June 22, under the direction of Mountain Trip guides. All three clients of the expedition were members of an Indonesian scouting group.

Baruno, one of his team members and the two guides mounted the summit sometime in the late afternoon of July 7.

Baruno's cause of death has not yet been determined.

The climber's remains rest in a protected and generally flat area outside of the 17,200-foot high camp. Plans have been developed to recover the body with the high altitude Lama helicopter when weather permits.

Only three days prior to Baruno's death, an Illinois man collapsed om the Mt. McKinley summit. However the 20-320-foot elevation and technically difficult terrain have prevented any recovery efforts. The body remains at the summit.