A tragic accident claimed the life of a college student who fell hundreds of feet while climbing Oregon's North Sister mountain. Joel Tranby, 21, was scaling the peak with his girlfriend on Monday when he tumbled between 300 and 500 feet, sustaining severe injuries.
Although his girlfriend managed to contact emergency services, she couldn't pinpoint his landing spot. According to Sgt. Tom Speldrich of the Lane County Sheriff’s Office, Tranby became unresponsive before rescuers arrived. The challenging terrain, characterized by loose rock and steep slopes, hampered search efforts.
After days of searching, utilizing drones, a helicopter, and a high-resolution camera, search and rescue teams located Tranby's body on Thursday. The sheriff's office expressed their condolences to Tranby's family and friends. Due to the precarious nature of the terrain, authorities are consulting climbing experts to determine the feasibility of a safe recovery mission.
North Sister, exceeding 10,000 feet in elevation, is notorious among climbers for its treacherous loose volcanic rock and limited rope anchoring options.
Tranby's mother, April Tranby, who had been sharing updates on social media since Monday, confirmed the devastating news on Facebook, expressing gratitude for the search and rescue teams and sharing her grief.
A student at Oregon State University, Tranby was an avid outdoorsman and a valued member of the Bend community, where he coached his former high school's Nordic Ski Team. His parents, April and David Tranby, issued a statement expressing their profound sorrow while also acknowledging the joy their son found in his passion for the outdoors.
